Inequality, Military Veteran Transitions, and Beyond: Compensatory Control Theory and Its Application to Real World Social Justice Problems

Who needs control? A cultural perspective on the process of compensatory control

“…Finally, how might transitions between cultures provide additional insights into how compensatory control processes are influenced by culture. As an example, consider the experience of transitioning between markedly different cultural contexts such as the military and civilian organizations (Kay & Gibbs, 2022; Shepherd et al., 2021). While in the military, soldiers work within a highly structured and organized system which provides them with clarity on when and how they are able to exercise their personal control over their employment.…”

“…While in the military, soldiers work within a highly structured and organized system which provides them with clarity on when and how they are able to exercise their personal control over their employment. However, when transitioning to a civilian employer, veterans often find themselves in environments of significantly less structure compared to the military (Gibbs et al., 2023), reducing their sense of control and leading to poor transition experiences (Kay & Gibbs, 2022). How does moving from a culture that is relatively high in external control to one that is relatively low in external control influence goal pursuit?…”

“…Finally, how might transitions between cultures provide additional insights into how compensatory control processes are influenced by culture. As an example, consider the experience of transitioning between markedly different cultural contexts such as the military and civilian organizations (Kay & Gibbs, 2022;Shepherd et al, 2021).…”

“…CCT goes on to argue that when individuals perceive a lack of personal control, they engage in psychological processes to shore up their underlying perception that the world is orderly, and that this serves to rebuild the foundation upon which personal control and individual goal pursuit may be developed. Recent research inspired by CCT has addressed timely applied and theoretical issues such as: what fuels belief in conspiracy theories (Kofta et al., 2020), the relationship between believing in God as a moral authority and perceiving injustice in the world (Stanley & Kay, 2022), how patients and doctors cope with uncertainty (McKoane & Sherman, 2022), and how perceptions of structure can impact cultural transitions (e.g., from military to civilian employment, Kay & Gibbs, 2022; Shepherd et al., 2021).…”