2. “My person was hideous and my
stature gigantic. What did this
mean? Who was I? Whence did I
come? What was my
destination? These questions
continually recurred, but I was
unable to solve them.”
-Mary Shelly, “Frankenstein.”
3. • Does military service affect
life-stage development?
• If so, how?
20. • On a closer examination
Veterans are doing
better…but with the amount
of resources, programs and
funding afforded them, plus
controlling for overall veteran
age, veterans should be doing
much better than they are.
21. • Does military service affect
life-stage development?
• If so, how?
23. • Branch of Service
• MOS (Job)
• Location of Service
• Length of Service
• Type of Service (Active/Reserve)
• Era of Service
– What Decade
– War vs. Peacetime
• Perception of Service
24. • Yes, of course!
• What Stage?
– Identity vs. role confusion?
– Intimacy vs. Isolation?
– Generativity vs. stagnation?
– Integrity vs. despair?
25. • If so, how?
– Moratorium
– Failure
– Acceleration
28. • Military identity is completely
assumed without critical
acceptance/rejection of
various parts.
• May not become a problem if
the person is a “career”
military member.
• Symptoms will most likely
appear as the person tries to
reenter society.
30. • A person completely rejects
military identity.
• Can cause serious problems for
the individual if they still have a
long term of service to complete.
• Often easiest to recover from
because rejection of military
identity is usually based off of an
identity that is already present.
• Can have a hard time “making
sense” of military service.
32. • “Still in” mindset
• Unable to transition to a less-
structured environment
• Amount of continuity between
military/civilian life is a large
factor
• Vocational restructuring?
• Commitment formation?
• Hostile culture?
35. On the other hand, military
service might increase or
accelerate identity formation
36. • Military identity promotes
“adult” or “identity” stuff
– Role responsibility
– Finances
– Promotions
– Separation from family
– Consequences
– Teamwork
– Having to cope with suffering
– Hard work
– Commitment to values
– Part of a collective
– Public service
37. • What makes the difference
between the two?
– Failure vs. Acceleration
38. • Four-ish major groups of
veterans out there
– WWII (Not a lot of data here)
– Vietnam
– Gulf War I
– Gulf War II (But not much data
here yet)
39. • WWII Veterans (Not a lot of
research)
– They’re doing well
• Education
– Even if they came from poor
depression era families, they’re
doing well
– Do have some war-related
problems
Education – Kelty, R., Kleykamp, M. & Segel, D. (2010) Military and the transition to adulthood. The Future of Children, 20(1), 181-207. Retrieved from
http://staff.washington.edu/dechter/classes/Soc352/Readings/Kelty%20et%20al_Military%20Transition%20Adulthood_FofC_10.pdf
Poor Families – Elder, G. H., Gimbel, C. & Ivie, R. (1991) Turning points in life: The case of military service and war. Military Psychology, 3(4), 215-231.
40. • Vietnam Veterans
– Mental health (Not good)
Kulka RA, Schlenger WE, Fairbank JA, Hough RL, Jordan BK, Marmar CR, Weiss DS: Trauma and the Vietnam War Generation: Report of
Findings From the National Vietnam Veterans Readjustment Study. New York, Brunner/Mazel, 1990.
41. • Vietnam Veterans
– Earning power
(employment/education)
Angrist, J. D. (1990) Lifetime earnings and the Vietnam era draft lottery: evidence from social security administrative records.The
American Economic Review, 80(3), 313-336.
Angrist, J. D. & Chen, S. Long-term consequences of Vietnam-era conscription: schooling, experience, and earnings. NBER Working
Paper Series, working paper 11341. Retrieved from http://www.nber.org/papers/w13411.pdf
42. • Gulf War I Veterans
– Doing okay
• Best employment rates (lowest
unemployment rates)
• Decent educational rates
• Middle of the road mental health
– Not as good as civilian population
– Not as bad as Vietnam or Gulf War II
Employment rates - http://www.va.gov/vetdata/docs/SpecialReports/LFPR_FINAL_March2.pdf
Education Rates - http://www.census.gov/content/dam/Census/library/publications/2014/acs/acsbr13-22.pdf
Mental Health – Toomey, R. et al. (2007) Mental health of US gulf war veterans 10 years after the war. The British Journal of Psychiatry, 190
(385-393). Retrieved from http://bjp.rcpsych.org/content/190/5/385.full
43. • Where do the differences in
service cohorts come from?
– Complex factors
• Two (Suspected) Factors:
– Personal perception of military
service
– Continuity w/ underlying identity
44. • Rejection from VA
– If you’re seeing a veteran, they
probably have VA issues
• PTSD
– Moral
– Experiential
– Training
45. • Make meaning out of military
service (Gerontology)
– If positive perspective
• Help client tell their story
• Find themes
• Help client develop preferred
narratives
• Highlight contribution to society
• Regrets = values
• Get involved in the veteran
community (service)
46. • Make meaning out of military
service (Gerontology)
– If negative perspective
• Help them tell their story
• What values did military service
rub up against?
• Was military service all bad, or
were there some bright spots?
• What wisdom was gained through
that experienced?
• What service can be done now in
accordance w/ values?
47. • Do integrated identity “stuff”
– Vocational selection/attainment
– Personality tests
– Value card sorts
– Habit development
– Community involvement
• Military community
• New community
– Grief?
