Stressor | Characteristics |
---|---|
1. Isolation | -Remote location |
-Foreign culture & language | |
-Distant from family/friends | |
-Unreliable communication tools | |
-Newly configured units, don’t know your co-workers | |
2. Ambiguity | -Unclear mission – changing mission |
-Unclear Rules-of-Engagement (ROE) | |
-Unclear command/leadership structure | |
-Role confusion (what’s my job?) | |
-Unclear norms, standards of behavior (what’s acceptable here & what is not?) | |
3. Powerlessness | -Movement restrictions |
-Rules of Engagement (ROE) constraints on response options | |
-Policies prevent intervening, providing help | |
-Forced separation from local culture, people, events, places | |
-Unresponsive supply chain – trouble getting needed supplies & repair parts | |
-Differing standards of pay, movement, behavior etc. for different units in area | |
-Indeterminate deployment length – don’t know when we’re going home | |
-Don’t know/can’t influence what is happening with family back home | |
4. Boredom (alienation) | -Long periods of repetitive work activities without variety |
-Lack of work that can be construed as meaningful, important | |
-Overall mission/purpose not understood as worthwhile or important | |
-Few options for play, entertainment | |
5. Danger (threat) | -Real risk of serious injury or death, from: |
-enemy fire, bullets, mortars, mines, explosive devices etc. | |
-accidents, including “friendly fire” | |
-disease, infection, toxins in the environment | |
-chemical, biological, or nuclear materials used as weapons | |
6. Workload | -High frequency, duration, and pace of deployments |
-Long work hours/days during the deployments | |
-Long work hours/days in periods before and after deployments |