Resiliency and Selfless Service Development in Army ROTC
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Louisiana State University LSU Digital Commons LSU Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School 2014 Resiliency and Selfless Service Development in Army ROTC Physical Training: A Qualitative Investigation Molly Voelz Fischer Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College, [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations Part of the Kinesiology Commons Recommended Citation Fischer, Molly Voelz, "Resiliency and Selfless Service Development in Army ROTC Physical Training: A Qualitative Investigation" (2014). LSU Doctoral Dissertations. 122. https://digitalcommons.lsu.edu/gradschool_dissertations/122 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at LSU Digital Commons. It has been accepted for inclusion in LSU Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized graduate school editor of LSU Digital Commons. For more information, please [email protected]. RESILIENCY AND SELFLESS SERVICE DEVELOPMENT IN ARMY ROTC PHYSICAL TRAINING: A QUALITATIVE INVESTIGATION A Dissertation Submitted to the Graduate Faculty of the Louisiana State University and Agricultural and Mechanical College in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy in The School of Kinesiology by Molly Voelz Fischer B.S., Pacific University, 2003 M.S., University of Kansas, 2007 M.A.S., Embry-Riddle Aeronautical University, 2013 August 2014 ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS Reflecting back on my academic career there are several people without whom I would not be where I am today and I certainly would not have been able to complete this project. First and foremost I would like to thank the cadre and cadets in the LSU Army ROTC Tiger Battalion. For three years I have been blessed to see the changes, growth, and commissions of some truly wonderful and inspirational people. There are truly not enough words to describe my level of admiration and respect; my learning has extended far beyond military culture, field manuals, procedures, and policies. The honor of working with the battalion has without a doubt made me a better person. I would like to extend a thank you to all my committee members: Dr. Tracey Rizzuto, my external committee member, for her indispensible knowledge and insights into a project extending outside the realms of kinesiology; Dr. Melinda Solmon, who challenged and pushed me to be a stronger researcher throughout my time at LSU; Dr. Birgitta Baker, for her willingness to lend support and insight regardless the task and always being there to answer my random questions. I would like to extend a special thank you to my advisor Dr. Alex Garn who allowed me to explore and run with research topics outside all confines of comfort, I could not be more grateful for his support. I am thankful that he trusted me enough to allow me to dive head first into military research. His advice, guidance, and overall mentorship has been integral in helping me to find my passion. I am extremely fortunate to have had the opportunity to work with such a talented group of professors who have been so generous in their guidance and expertise. Even from thousands of miles away I would not be the person I am today without the support and love of two amazing ladies; Audra “Auds” Stave, my partner in crime ii who can always be counted on for an hour-long laugh session, life talks, and adventures (C is for collaboration); 2nd Lieutenant Laura Kaae, cousin by birth but sister by heart. There is no one I would rather talk about life, family, and the military with, she is truly an inspiration and I am so lucky to share the Voelz name with such a wonderful family member. Thank you to all the people I have been fortunate to call my Louisiana family: Melissa and Robbie Taylor, Keith Randazzo, K-Lynn McKey, Stephanie Goudeau, Dr. Emily Beasley, Kate Austin, Allison Raguse, Dr. Lori Patrick, and everyone in Red Stick Brew Masters. Between adventures, weekly traditions, swimming, walks around the lakes, tailgating, conferences, mental health breaks, brewskis, and support I hope they know just how much they truly mean to me. Everyone’s journey through education is unique and to all the teachers and professors I have had over the years who have instilled their own passions in each lesson and lecture I extend a huge thank you: Miss Helen Plov, whom ignited my love of kinesiology with a 1-mile run; Dr. Brian Jackson, his mentorship and impact on my life is endless and I am forever grateful; Dr. Susan King, who saw potential, facilitated creative thinking, and expected only the best; and Dr. Lieutenant Colonel William Little, who encouraged me to combine my love of kinesiology and human factors research. Finally, an enormous thank you to my parents Alan Fischer and Annette Voelz, their immense amounts of love and support have not waivered in nearly 30 years and I know that I have not always made it easy. They have encouraged me to be independent, to figure out my place in the world, and taught me the importance of working hard to get there. I have cherished each visit, trip home, piece of mail, text, e-mail, and phone call more than you will ever know. iii TABLE OF CONTENTS ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS ................................................................................................ ii CHAPTER ONE INTRODUCTION ...................................................................................1 CHAPTER TWO: RESILIENCY DEVELOPMENT IN ARMY ROTC CADETS .....................................................................................................9 CHAPTER THREE: SELFLESS SERVICE DEVELOPMENT IN ARMY ROTC CADETS ..............................................................................................40 CHAPTER FOUR: SUMMARY AND CONCLUSIONS ................................................75 REFERENCES ..................................................................................................................82 APPENDIX A: EXTENDED REVIEW OF LITERATURE .....................................................89 B: STUDY ONE INTERVIEW GUIDES ...........................................................123 C: STUDY TWO INTERVIEW GUIDES ..........................................................127 D: CADRE INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT EXAMPLE ......................................131 E: CAET INTERVIEW TRANSCRIPT EXAMPLE ..........................................138 F: FIELD OBSERVATION EXAMPLES ..........................................................151 G: FIELD OBSERVATION DATA COLLECTION FORM .............................154 H: COPY OF IRB APPROVAL FORM ..............................................................155 VITA ................................................................................................................................156 ABSTRACT Leadership in the United States Army is essential for successful completion of domestic and international missions. Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) programs are used to effectively develop leadership skills within the Army. Physical training (PT) is a mandatory component in ROTC, used to improve physical ability and prepare cadets for the rigors of the “big Army” environment. Resiliency and selfless service development are seen as critical elements of leadership, yet little is known about the formal and informal experiences in ROTC PT that facilitate or hinder resiliency and selfless service during early career preparation. The overall purpose of this dissertation was to provide insight into the development of cadets’ resiliency and selfless service in the context of PT. Two qualitative studies were used to address these issues. The purpose of the first study was to investigate resiliency development in an ROTC PT context. The Army recognizes five dimensions of resiliency, which maximize solders’ fortitude and mental toughness. Failure, challenge, and support played significant roles in cadets’ development of resiliency dimensions. Lack of support and organization were the greatest contributors to lack of resiliency throughout the battalion. Overall, ROTC PT improved specific dimensions of resiliency in effort to produce successful leaders in the United States Army. The purpose of the second qualitative study was to investigate selfless service development in an ROTC PT context using Identity Fusion Theory- used in situations where individuals are willing to make significant personal sacrifices on behalf of a group. Results underscored how cadets’ identity became increasingly fused with the ROTC organization through exposure to emotionally charged experiences. Fighting for a high placement on the Order of Merit List facilitated peer competition, which both increased potential for identity fusion and negative self-centric influences on selfless service. Furthermore, results indicated that assigned leadership roles throughout the program were also critical in evolving a cadet’s brain from self-centric to Army-centric (i.e. selfless behavior). Overall, results provided insight into resiliency and selfless service development among United States Army ROTC cadets in PT. Implications for cadre and other leaders as well as suggestions for future research are included. CHAPTER ONE: INTRODUCTION Introduction Physical training (PT) is a mandatory program used to develop cadets’ physical fitness within all Army and Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) programs. PT is critical for cadets’ success because physical fitness is considered a basic skill necessary for military personnel to perform mission tasks effectively