ABSTRACT
Theoretical framework Bliese and Castro’s (2003) soldier adaptation model (SAM) provides a broad conceptual scheme representing the ways in which stressors lead to certain outcomes. Figure 19.1 illustrates the model; factors discussed in this chapter are displayed in italic. In many ways, the SAM model is similar to other theoretical models of (occupational) stress, like the Michigan stress model (Kahn 1981) and Karasek’s (1979) demands-control model. The SAM model is also very well applicable to families (e.g. Hammer et al. 2006). The components of the SAM model are: military stressors; individual, unit, and organizational factors; and – finally – outcomes that result from being deployed (Figure 19.1). Stressors are the demands of the environment (e.g. Gaillard 2008). Various individual, unit and organizational factors ameliorate the impact of these stressors on service members’ and families’ well-being, such as coping, hardiness, social support, and leadership. Organizational interventions aim at reducing stressors or levels of stress and enhancing resiliency, but influencing individual, unit, and organizational factors may be easier. For example, it may be easier to work with a struggling platoon commander than to teach all members of that platoon how to cope effectively with stress caused by poor leadership (Bliese and Castro 2003). When individual, unit, and organizational factors are managed well, military personnel’s well-being and performance will be optimal. In the next paragraphs, we elaborate several aspects of the SAM model, which are important in the context of military operations.
