Funding for Military Psychology - Essay Example

Funding for Military Psychology With the advent of technology, man has now become able to achieve lot of what was thought impossible in the past centuries. It is truly admirable how much human beings have developed and how much they have changed the world from what it used to be centuries ago. However, as technology develops and as more innovations are brought to the fore, the risk to the life of people is equally increasing. Terrorism and threat to the nation from foreign countries is a challenge faced by innocent citizens who are helpless to defend themselves against the same. Thus, in such a scenario, it is the military service personnel that take care of the nation’s security needs and put their lives in line to save the citizens. Being in military service is inevitable because the nation requires its own defense force that can safeguard and protect the country as well as the citizens against any such possible threat. It does not come as a surprise that “700,000 children in America” have one of their parents “deployed to a war zone” (Johnson et al. 4). However, being deployed in such a demanding profession requires great physical, mental and psychological strength. Therefore, the relevance of military psychology becomes clearly expressed, and it transpires that government should provide maximum possible funds in order to support military psychology. The military profession requires the people involved to stay fit and healthy throughout their course of service, so they have to undergo severe training in order to meet the demands of the same. The training given in military comprises basic training, and other high endurance exercises and programs that are formulated with an aim to keep the personnel highly competent and fit in all terms. Along with the physical competence rendered to the troops through training, they acquire other skill sets and important qualities such as courage, tactics, strategic thinking, etc. Different types of training need to be provided for the troops, which would make them competent to face “diverse missions, including counter-terrorism, asymmetric threats, traditional threats, reconstruction, and humanitarian assistance missions” (Catanzano 1). Highly integrated training programs that incorporate a mix of different technologies are being developed in order to prepare the soldiers for the same, and one such training program is “Live, Virtual and Constructive (LVC) training” that engages the troops in interactive virtual settings, which replicate real life scenarios (1). Other training programs involve “Map Exercise (MAPEX), Tactical Engagement Simulation Exercise (TESEX), Command Post Exercise (CPX), Field Training Exercise (FTX),” etc. (“Basic Standards” 49). In addition to such diversified programs, the physical training that military personnel have to undergo in order to hone their combat skills are even more tough and require high levels of stamina and mental strength. Therefore, such arduous training is bound to put the troops under excessive stress, which at times they might not be able to cope with. In such cases, not only does the training fail to achieve its purpose; furthermore, it forces the military personnel to lose their sense of psychological balance. As a result, they will be unable to perform well in the warfare phases, thus putting in risk the country and the citizens. In addition to the troops being unfit to face the real world missions and jeopardizing the safety of the ones they were meant to protect, the negative results occurring due to stress caused by training further extend to other phases. For instance, it is known that the government spends a significant amount of funds in order to support such technology. So when it gives rise to negative implications, it transpires that all the “considerable effort and expense” that went behind creating and delivering such “high quality graphical, audio and haptic sensory stimuli” has gone to waste (Rizzo et al. 1). Furthermore, the time involved to train the soldiers also is in vain, and where money and efforts can be used again, the time that has gone can never be brought back. However, on the other hand, neither physical training that makes the troop physically competent to battle, nor “simulation training” that increases the “sensory fidelity and interactional realism” of the troop to a “virtual environment (VE)” can be avoided due to the cost and other factors involved (1). Thus, since these training programs are inevitable, it becomes clear that there is no choice but to spend for the same. However, a way to conquer the stress or control it to an extent is by providing psychological support to the military personnel undergoing the training. In the same light, this involves funding from the government, and it appears that military funding should be most necessarily done by the government so as to promote the psychological well being of the troops. In addition to stress inflicted to the military personnel through training, another significant factor that contributes to increased stress and anxiety levels in the troops is the behavior of their colleagues, or even superiors. Often it is the case that a newly recruited person in the force is susceptible to immense pressure from the whole new scenario presented through the military front. There is a mix of pressure from the high expectations of the officials, harassment from superiors and fellow colleagues as well as the demanding training programs. In order to gain some control over the anxiety that may arise from the aforementioned, the freshly deployed trainees need psychological support from professional psychologists who can guide them in coping with the same. Being away from the family members and being under constant surveillance and a strictly organized system, which leaves no room for errors, basically gives the feeling of loneliness and exerts extreme pressure on the cadets. Thus, when they are confronted with soothing words from psychologists who routinely check up the members and provide them with psychological support, they will be able to handle all sorts of stress that their mind is always under, in a much better way. In the case of existing troops, they might also encounter similar problems despite being used to the strict system of order in the military service. However, fights may break out at any given point in time and no matter how matured the troop is, he is surely subject to distress, which will in turn cause problems to his mental health. Furthermore, even when they go to the bar to get some relaxation, fights may occur intentionally due to people holding grudges, or unintentionally by people who are intoxicated by alcohol. Either way, whatever reasons for the fights, the fact remains that such fights cause more stress to the already stressed out military personnel. Thus, it is clearly emphasized here how troops require psychological attention in order to help them overcome stress involved in their daily lives spent in military service. In terms of an exacting profession such as military service, it is seen that the personnel involved exceedingly need “psychological support before, during and after operations” and missions they have to take part in throughout their career (“Stress and Psychological Support” 1). The stress involved before the military operations, as compared to stress that is inflicted on the troops during and after operations, remains immense and countless. The degree of stress that troops undergo after coming back from their missions is of a much higher magnitude than that before induction. A study conducted by Pentagon has revealed that over “100,000” of the returning soldiers require subsequent “mental health treatment” (Levitt 3). Soldiers who have been on field missions in a foreign country such as Iraq or Afghanistan for a long period of time are among the ones who suffer the most from different kinds of stress. It is common to see that returning soldiers often suffer from disorders such as “adjustment disorder, substance abuse, PTSD, Traumatic Brain Injury (TBI), depression, grief/bereavement” (Johnson et al. 7). Furthermore, it is seen that being exposed to traumatic events can “shatter the assumptions of invincibility, predictability, and personal control” of the soldiers, thus seriously affecting their mental health (Britt, Adler, and Castro 239). Moreover, soldiers who suffer from PTSD are highly susceptible to “clinical depression, hyper-vigilance, insomnia, emotional numbing, recurring nightmares, and intrusive thoughts” (Levitt 3). Despite the apparent needs of military personnel in terms of psychological support and mental health services, the fact remains that such needs are largely unmet. The US Army Surgeon General, through a survey, brought to the fore that “only 27 percent” of troops who showed positive signs of “depression, anxiety, or traumatic stress” had received mental health services during the time they were deployed in the military (Levitt 3). It is highly relevant that government provide funds in order to make available mental health services to the troops recruited in the military services. The funds should be sufficient so as to hire professional psychologists, who are skilled and efficient and can help the soldiers to prepare themselves prior to being exposed to traumatic situations, thus preventing possible future psychological consequences. After undergoing traumatic experiences being under the care of a psychologist and constantly meeting up with such a professional will enable the trooper to gain a kind of “spirituality” that will enable him to “process (his) operational experiences within a personally meaningful framework” (Britt, Adler, and Castro 239). Furthermore, another important aspect to note is that “early intervention” right after “exposure to stressful events can be effective,” as this will help in the detection of any present symptom at an early stage and will enable an early diagnosis (239). So, the stress levels of soldiers can be controlled to a large extent and at the same time, they can be prepared for further stresses that they may have to encounter in the course of their service. Therefore, with frequent evaluation from the side of psychologists the military members can be checked up for any possible symptom of mental health problems and confide in the professionals regarding any problems they have. This will significantly minimize the stress levels of the troops, and they can be better prepared to face any challenges that may come their way. Soldiers may have varying mental health problems based on stress from their demanding profession, the high expectations of their officials, harassment from their colleagues, and general stress accumulated as a result of various traumatic experiences from warfare situations. In order for these soldiers to remain in the force, they need to be both physically and mentally competent, and it becomes clear how psychological support plays a significant role in their mental health. Therefore, it transpires that government needs to provide maximum possible funds in order to support military psychology, thus safeguarding the interests of the military personnel in return for the exceptional service they provide to the country and the citizens. Works Cited “Basic Standards for Armed Forces of BiH Collective Training.” n.d. Web. 5 Dec, 2013. http://www.mod.gov.ba/files/file/dokumenti/defense/collectivetrainingstandards.pdf. Britt, Thomas W, Amy B. Adler, and Carl A. Castro. Military Life: The Psychology of Serving in Peace and Combat. Westport, Conn: Praeger Security International, 2006. Print. Catanzano, Keith. “Enhanced Training for a 21st-Century Military.” Booz Allen Hamilton Inc. 2011. Web. 5 Dec, 2013. http://www.boozallen.com/media/file/enhanced-training-for-a-21st-century- military.pdf.  Johnson, Shannon J., et al. The Psychological Needs of U.S. Military Service Members and Their Families: A Preliminary Report. American Psychological Association. Presidential Task Force on Military Deployment Services for Youth, Families and Service Members, February, 2007. Web. 5 Dec, 2013. http://www.ptsd.ne.gov/publications/military-deployment-task-force-report.pdf. Levitt, Nina G. “Educating and Training Psychologists to Meet the Needs of America’s Military Personnel and their Families.” Department of Defence: Center for Deployment Psychology: American Psychological Association, n.d. Web. 5 Dec, 2013. http://www.apa.org/about/gr/issues/military/white-paper.pdf. Rizzo, Albert, Jacquelyn F. Morie, Josh Williams, Jarrell Pair, and J. Galen Buckwalter. “Human Emotional State and its Relevance for Military VR Training.” The Proceedings of the 11th International Conference on Human Computer Interaction. 2005. Web. 5 Dec, 2013. http://ict.usc.edu/pubs/Human%20Emotional%20State%20and%20its%20Relevance %20for%20Military%20VR%20Training.pdf. “Stress and Psychological Support in Modern Military Operations.” The Research and Technology Organisation (RTO) of NATO, April 2008. Web. 5 Dec, 2013. http://natorto.cbw.pl/uploads/2008/4/TR-HFM-081-ALL.pdf.  Read More