No Place Like Home? Postdeployment Reintegration Challenges Facing South African Peacekeepers

Heinecken, Lindy; Wilén, Nina

doi:10.1177/0095327x19894719

Cited by 11 publications

(28 citation statements)

References 45 publications

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“…The results confirm the findings by Heinecken and Wilén (2021) that the SANDF should provide better support during all phases of the absence. It may also be that, despite the services being offered, members do not take part in the support services for various reasons, including the stigma associated with counselling and therapy (Hosek et al, 2006) To be able to provide comprehensive support, the organisation should ensure that a multi-disciplinary team is available to support the members before, during and after their absence (Kalamdien & Van Dyk, 2009;Sheppard et al, 2010;Sipos et al, 2014).…”

Section: Extending Organisational Support Efforts To Include All the ...supporting

confidence: 90%

“…From the current study, it was evident that formal support efforts are mostly concentrated on the period before the absence, in the form of resilience training to military members. In absences due to peacekeeping operations, the resilience training was perceived as valuable, especially in terms of the input it provided regarding the reintegration phase after the deployment (Heinecken, 2020;Heinecken & Wilén, 2021).…”

Section: Discussionmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…When the family unit and spouse support the absence and it is possible for the military member to still feel part of the daily activities at home, the stress associated with the separation is not felt as severely as when there is a strong sense of alienation and not being part of the family anymore (Heinecken & Ferreira, 2012). The pinnacle of negative experiences during absences is particularly related to absence from children (Heinecken & Wilén, 2021), especially because children may experience crucial developmental milestones (i.e. first words, first steps and first day in school) during the absence.…”

Section: Stressors During the Absencementioning

confidence: 99%

“…Upon return, the military members may show symptoms of depression, anxiety, acute stress, and even post-traumatic stress disorders (Johnson et al, 2007;Sheppard et al, 2010). Heinecken and Wilén (2021) point out that both internal and external factors influence the reintegration of the military member in the family. External factors relate to the nature of the member's duty during the absence as well as socio-economic and demographic factors of financial status, rank, and length of the deployment.…”

Section: Stressors Related To Reintegrationmentioning

confidence: 99%

“…Reintegration initiatives could have a considerable effect on military members and their families in understanding possible conflicts that may arise on their return after extended absence. The function of a reintegration initiative is to assist the member and his or her family with the re-entry and effective functioning after return from an absence at both personal and societal level (Heinecken & Wilén, 2021). This may take the form of a training programme or an individual member from the helping professions, such as a psychologist, social worker or chaplain, who assists in the reintegration process.…”

Section: Support After the Absence: Reintegration Into The Family Unitmentioning

confidence: 99%

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Organisational support to overcome the challenges of extended absences of officers in the SANDF

Harmse

O’Neil

Strasheim

2022

SCIM

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Generally, military members are often required to work away from home, resulting in extended absences from their families. International studies have shown the effects of extended absences to be severe and associated with long-term social, emotional and behavioural challenges. Longer and more frequent absences negatively affect member morale and could result in military members terminating their employment sooner than planned to maintain their personal relationships and to ensure the wellbeing of their families. The aim of the study on which this article reports was to explore and describe the experiences of extended absences on members of the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) with specific reference to organisational support to aid both the member and his or her family to cope with the challenges experienced before, during and after absences. In-depth interviews were conducted with 12 senior officers of the SANDF during 2019 and 2020, before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic. The interviews focused on officers’ lived experiences of extended absences due to deployment or military training. The findings indicated that absence generally has an adverse influence on military members, not only due to the challenges they face during the absence, but mostly due to the effect it has on their families. Organisational support is not only required in terms of preparing the military member, but should be extended to include preparation prior to their absence, care for the military members and their families during the period of absence, as well as support with reintegration after the absence. The results of this study show that little support is provided by the organisation, especially during reintegration after deployment, and especially in the case of absences due to training. Organisational support during the preparation phase, during absence and with reintegration could mitigate the stress and negative experience associated with extended absences. With the aim of strengthening the capacity of the armed forces, we propose various initiatives that could assist military members and their families to cope with the additional strain of prolonged separation.

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