Courage in the Military: Physical and Moral

Olsthoorn, Peter

doi:10.1080/15027570701755471

Cited by 24 publications

(6 citation statements)

References 2 publications

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“…We are learning how to treat moral injuries (Drescher et al, 2011), which often involves forgiveness, social reintegration, and reparations. Resilience training for soldiers should include a focus on moral courage (Olsthoorn, 2007), with a view toward preventing atrocities. This will not only protect veterans' (and others') wellbeing but could also actively promote their successful aging.…”

Section: Policies and Programsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-term Outcomes of Military Service in Aging and the Life Course: A Positive Re-envisioning

2015

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Most research on military service focuses on its short-term negative consequences, especially the mental and physical injuries of those deployed in warzones. However, studies of long-term outcomes reveal surprisingly positive effects of military service--both those early in adulthood that grow over time and others that can emerge later in life. These multidomain effects have been found in veterans of World War II and the Korean War and are now being seen in veterans of the Vietnam War. Although some are directly attributable to public policies such as the GI Bill, which facilitate educational and economic gains, there are personal developmental gains as well, including autonomy, emotional maturity and resilience, mastery, and leadership skills, that lead to better health and well-being in later life. These long-term effects vary across persons, change over time within persons, and often reflect processes of cumulative advantage and disadvantage. We propose a life-span model of the effects of military service that provides a perspective for probing both long-term positive and negative outcomes for aging veterans. We further explicate the model by focusing on both sociocultural dynamics and individual processes. We identify public-use data that can be examined to evaluate this model, and offer a set of questions that can be used to assess military service. Finally, we outline an agenda for dedicated inquiry into such effects and consider policy implications for the health and well-being of aging veterans in later life.

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Section: Policies and Programsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Long-term Outcomes of Military Service in Aging and the Life Course: A Positive Re-envisioning

2015

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“…Freedom to express and disclose individual circumstances is a bonded enterprise for the victim, bound up in omnipotent pressures of the socializing process. For example, an unveiling of victimization could resemble the antithesis of virtues such as honour-whereby honour may be seen as commensurate with ''toughness'' (Cohen & Nisbett, 1994); courage-to act without courage is to act cowardly (see Olsthoorn, 2007); loyalty-to be considered disloyal to the spouse or partner and undermine the ''ideals'' of an intimate relationship (see Fletcher, Simpson, Thomas, & Giles, 1999); integrity-''doing what one thinks is right because doing otherwise would undermine one's sense of one's own self-worth'' (Robinson, 2007b, p. 260); respect-that a victim status may attract stigmatization and confirm the designation of a ''spoiled identity.'' Other participants have also described professional norms of the military and their challenges in disclosing their victimization.…”

Section: Subserviencementioning

confidence: 99%

Intimate Partner Violence and Abuse Against Men: Voices of Victimization Among Ex-Servicemen of the British Armed Forces

Taylor

Keeling

Mottershead

2017

Illness, Crisis & Loss

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This study presents the personal testimonies of male British ex-Armed Forces personnel who have experienced violence and abuse victimisation that was perpetrated by civilian female partners. In this research, we argue that to embark upon any understanding of the domestic lives of military personnel, an appreciation of the linkages to the cultural context of the military institution is necessary.Understanding the influence of the military institution beyond the military domain is crucial. We unveil the nature and character of the violence and abuse and how the servicemen negotiated their relationships. In doing so, we highlight the embodiment of military discipline, skills and tactics in the home -not ones of violence which may be routinely linked to military masculinities; rather ones of restraint, tolerance, stoicism and the reduction of a threat to inconsequential individual significance.

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“… 17 The PCWS focuses on physical courage, emphasizing a courageous predisposition in which the risks involved might affect employees’ physical well-being. 43 , 44 The PCWS consists of 30 items rated from 1 (minor agreement) to 7 (severe agreement) and five factors including immediate danger, providing for family, others’ aggression, reporting violations and helping society ( Appendices ). The model fit indices were above the acceptable thresholds.…”

Section: Methodsmentioning

confidence: 99%

The Validity of Virtual Courage for Trainees in High-Risk Occupations

Wang¹,

Wang²,

Jiang³

et al. 2022

PRBM

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Background Employees in high-risk occupations are exposed to tremendous work stress that hinders organizational effectiveness and personal mental health. Based on positive psychology, courage can be considered a protective factor that buffers the adverse effect of high-risk surroundings on employees. However, little is known about the way courage is simulated or evaluated in response to safety concerns. Virtual reality (VR) is an accessible tool for courage simulation due to its immersive qualities, presence and interactive features and may provide a promising pathway to achieve a scientific, accurate and ecologically valid evaluation of high-risk employees. Methods The sample consisted of 51 high-risk employees who were recruited voluntarily. Before and after experiencing the VR courage scenarios, the participants completed the VR features questionnaire, the Physical Courage at Work Scale (PCWS), the Courage Measure (CM), and the Positive and Negative Affect Scale (PANAS). During the process of watching the VR courage scenarios, the participants’ heart rate and skin conductance at resting-state baseline and during virtual courage scenarios were recorded through HTC VIVE Pro Eye and BioGraph Infiniti 8. Results The results support the hypothesis and reveal that the interaction, immersion and presence scores of the scenarios were all significantly higher than the median 4 points. The score for the CM in the posttest was significantly higher than that in the pretest. The scared and afraid scores for the posttest were significantly higher than those for the pretest. The heart rate and skin conductance of each scenario showed an increase compared with the baseline. The Pearson’s correlation between physiological indicators and the score of the PCWS was 0.28~0.54. Conclusion This study developed virtual courage for high-risk occupations based on well-established theory and VR technology. Experimental data revealed that the paradigm conformed to the requirements of VR features and was able to activate fear and evoke the quality of courage. Thus, the virtual courage paradigms have good validity in simulating scenarios for high-risk employees, which might accelerate organizational effectiveness while buffering working stress.

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Courage in the Military: Physical and Moral

Cited by 24 publications

References 2 publications

Long-term Outcomes of Military Service in Aging and the Life Course: A Positive Re-envisioning

Long-term Outcomes of Military Service in Aging and the Life Course: A Positive Re-envisioning

Intimate Partner Violence and Abuse Against Men: Voices of Victimization Among Ex-Servicemen of the British Armed Forces

The Validity of Virtual Courage for Trainees in High-Risk Occupations

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