Adaption and adjustment of military spouses to overseas postings: An online forum study

Little research has examined the impact of being an accompanying spouse on British military foreign postings. The aim of this qualitative study was to investigate the experiences of 13 military spouses from 11 different overseas locations. Data were collected via an online forum and thematic content analysis was conducted. Key findings revealed that, regardless of the location, reactions to overseas posting varied considerably and were related to the military spouse's personality and personal circumstances, as well as their relationship with family, husband and their support networks. Spouses experienced a loss of control over their lives that was in some cases psychologically distressing. The findings corroborate and extend the findings from a previous study that was limited to one location, further highlighting the need for pre-established support resources from the military and healthcare professionals to be readily accessible for all military spouses. Importantly, such support provision may also facilitate the military spouse in regaining some control over their everyday life, enhancing their well-being and the experience for the family.

The impact of foreign postings on accompanying military spouses: an ethnographic study

As part of an ethnographic study, the impact of foreign postings on spouses who accompany military personnel was explored. Individual interviews and focus groups with 34 British military spouses based in one location in southern Europe were conducted. Key findings suggested that reaction to a foreign posting was a reflection of personal attitudes, prior experiences, support, ability to adjust to change and strength of relationship with the serving spouse and community. For many the experience was positive due to the increased opportunity for family time, for others this helped to compensate for the difficulties experienced. Some military spouses experienced significant distress on the posting, particularly if the family was not well-supported. The potential implications of military spouses not adapting to foreign postings have significant implications for healthcare practice. Provision of more appropriate support resources before and during the posting would facilitate the transition for the military spouse and their family.

Fractured lives : Australian prisoners of war of the Japanese and their families

Examines how the particular nature of captivity by the Japanese during World War II intensified and complicated the impact, legacy and memory of war for POWs and their families. It presents insights into the experience of the prisoners' wives and how battalion associations protect and promote the remembrance of war.

Bombs and biodiversity: a case study of military environmentalism in Australia

The relationship between war, militarization, and landscapes is far more complex and nuanced than one characterized by domination and destruction. While the preparation, waging, and aftermath of war clearly have a range of negative landscape impacts, military forces are holding increasingly important, complementary roles in the defense of high conservation value sites.

Australia and New Zealand: separate states but path-dependent

Australia and New Zealand (Aotearoa) have shared almost two centuries of close relations created through close geographic proximity, shared membership of political associations, and frequent policy exchange. The relevant context has shifted from the British Empire and Commonwealth to a rapidly globalizing world under US military hegemony. Australia and New Zealand were among the early settler colonies of the British Empire and this article argues that, as such, the settler colonies helped shape the form of the Empire, and subsequently the Commonwealth. This history created strong, separate, if somewhat similar, traditions of independent political experimentation. This article explores different models for explaining the cross-Tasman relationship and concludes that the path-dependent approach works best. The path was also influenced by external shocks, notably the second world war and Britain's moves towards Europe, and it was these shocks that created the necessary ruptures to create change. The first world war had catapulted Australia and New Zealand towards separate nationhood, and simultaneously strengthened their cultural and political links. The second world war pushed Australia towards the USA and led both Australia and New Zealand to develop a more explicit role as regional leaders in the Pacific. For New Zealand, Britain's membership of the European Community created an economic crisis and politico-cultural stresses which are reverberating still. Such shocks created the preconditions also for closer association, exemplified in the CER Treaty, which in turn draws upon historical precedents and experiences.

Ethnomusicological study of music makers in an Australian military band

This dissertation reports on a study of music making in a band of the Australian Army Band Corps. The thesis of the dissertation is how the world views of the soldier-musicians of the Australian Army Band, Kapooka, are constructed in the context of their work in military music performance. In arguing this thesis, the author provides a brief history of military music in Australia, and - demonstrates how rank and military discipline intersect with music making in the lived experience of the soldier-musicians; - explores how the dichotomy between music making as a craft and music making as art is resolved in a setting where the employer regards music making as a trade, while the soldier-musicians strive to meet artistic goals; - demonstrates how successful music making and successful soldiering are both forms of work which depend upon effective collective action; - demonstrates that while military bands play the widest repertoire of musical styles of any Western music ensemble, the styles converge toward a homogenous, eclectic, military band performance style: and - explores how military music, which may have limited intrinsic interest, in certain ceremonial settings may link with other visual and auditory symbol systems to generate profound meaning both for the soldier-musicians themselves and for their audiences. The study examines the processes by which the world views of soldier-musicians are shaped by the institutional context in which they work, as they participate in a music tradition which has been a powerful agent in the shaping of Australian patriotic traditions. The study uses a naturalistic participant observation methodology. The author worked as an honorary guest civilian member of the band’s trombone section to collect data in the form of fieldnotes and interviews. Data analysis and interpretation was made according to the tenets of grounded theory. Evidence in the form of first hand accounts from the perspective of the researcher and from the soldier-musicians themselves is employed to generate both emic and etic understandings. An understanding of a music culture from the participant's point of view is a central concern of the study.

Exploring Health in Military Families: Does Continuity of Care Influence Patient Satisfaction?

To ensure mission-readiness for military members, support for their families is essential. Military family health and health care satisfaction has been a neglected area of study in this population. Satisfaction can be defined in terms of patient-, provider-, and practice-level factors and is influenced by continuity of care, which is often poor in transient military populations. Using a modified patient satisfaction survey, this study found that both the number of moves and assigned providers were significantly associated with continuity of care in military spouses. Further, continuity of care was a significant predictor of satisfaction with military health care.

Étude des perceptions du trouble de stress post-traumatique parmi des militaires canadiens et leur conjointe

Cette recherche vise à explorer la satisfaction à l’égard des services reçus par les militaires diagnostiqués d’un trouble de stress post-traumatique (TSPT) et leur conjointe, ainsi qu’à comprendre leurs besoins et le sens donné au TSPT. Nous utilisons l’analyse qualitative exploratoire comme méthode d’analyse de données. Nous découvrons d’une part que les militaires et les conjointes rencontrées souhaitent recevoir des services adaptés à leur situation particulière (cas par cas) et d’autre part, que tous les répondants ont le besoin commun que l’on reconnaisse leurs sacrifices. Pour les militaires, une manière de reconnaitre ces sacrifices serait de respecter leurs souhaits et leurs demandes en ce qui concerne les soins. Une prise en charge complète de l’aspect administratif du rétablissement et de la libération serait également souhaitable lorsqu’indiquée. Nous trouvons également des différences entre les militaires ayant reçu un diagnostic de TSPT il y a plus de 5 ans et ceux qui l’ont reçu récemment. Nous proposons des hypothèses liées à ces différences. Finalement, les lacunes importantes en ce qui concerne les services offerts aux conjointes sont le manque de connaissance de ces dits services par les conjointes, la stigmatisation et la perception négative qu’ont les conjointes à l’égard du principal prestataire de service, les centres de ressources pour les familles des militaires. Cette étude nous permet de faire des recommandations en lien avec les résultats trouvés.

Understanding educational process in leadership development

This thesis is a case study of educational process in the leadership development program of the Australian Defence Force Academy. The intention is to determine the relative emphasis in educational process on the conventional command and managerial compliance (Type A) style and the emergent contingent and creative (Type B) style of leadership. The Type A style is theorised as emphasizing hierarchy and control, whereas the emphasis in a Type B style is on adaptive and entrepreneurial behaviour. This study looks at the learning process in a cultural and structural context rather than focus on curriculum and instructional design. Research in this wider context is intended to enable development processes to successfully bridge a gap between theory and practice, implicit in studies that identify theories 'in-operation' as different from the theories 'espoused' (Argyris 1992, Savage 1996). In terms of espoused and in-use theory, the study seeks to produce a valid and reliable result to the question: what is the relative emphasis on the two leadership styles in the operation of the three educational mechanisms of curriculum, pedagogy (teaching practice) and assessment? The quantitative analysis of results (n = 114) draws attention to both leadership styles in terms of two and three-way relationships of style, cadet or work group and service type. The data shows that both Type A and Type B leadership styles are evident in the general conversation of the organisation. This trend is present as espoused theory in the curriculum of the Defence Academy. However, the data also confirm a clear and strong emphasis towards command and managerial compliance as theory-in-use, particularly by cadets. This emphasis is noticeably evident in the teaching and assessment practice of the Defence Academy. Other research outcomes include the observation that: Contextually, while studies show it is difficult to isolate skills from their cultural and biographical context (Watkins, 1991:15), this study suggests that it is equally difficult to isolate skills development from this context. There is a strong task or instrumental link identified by cadet responses in terms of content and development process at the Defence Academy, in contrast to the wider developmental emphasis in general literature and senior officer interviews. There is a lack of awareness of teaching strategies and development activity consistent with espoused Type B leadership theory and curriculum content. This gap is compounded by the use in the Defence Academy of personnel without teaching expertise or suitable developmental experience. The socialisation of cadets into the military workplace is the primary purpose of training. This purpose appears taken for granted by all concerned - staff, cadets and senior officers. Defence Academy development processes appear to be faced with a dilemma. Arguably, training and learning from experience are limited approaches to development. Training, which involves learning by replication, and learning from experience, which is largely imitative, are both of little use when people are faced with novel and ambiguous situations. This study suggests that in order to support the development of capabilities that go beyond training based competence a learning and development approach is needed. This more expansive approach requires educational planners to consider the cultural and social context that can inadvertently promote the status quo in practice over espoused outcomes.

THE PRICE SENSITIVITY OF DEMAND FOR HIGHER EDUCATION AMONG NON-TRADITIONAL STUDENTS

This dissertation examines the price sensitivity of demand for higher education among non-traditional students in the United States. Chapter 1 discusses the issues related to the demand for higher education. It presents the recent trends and reviews the literature addressing these issues. A major conclusion that emerges from this chapter is that the price sensitivity of demand for higher education appears to depend on the source of the variation in price and the characteristics of the students who face the price change. The baseline estimate for the price sensitivity of demand is that a $1,000 (in year 2000 dollars) decrease in tuition costs should result in a 4 percentage-point increase in enrollment for the traditional 18- to 24-year-old student. Chapter 2 examines the price sensitivity of demand for higher education for military spouses resulting from variation in tuition due to military-mandated moves across states. The data suggest that a $1,000 (in year 2000 dollars) decrease in the cost of 2-year schools is associated with a 1--1.5 percentage-point increase in the probability of attending college. This estimate is less than half the previous estimates due to in-state tuition price differences faced by the civilian 18- to 24-year-old population on a percentage-point basis. However, this represents a 7--10 percent increase for this population, and the magnitude of this metric is in line with previous estimates. This suggests tuition assistance can be an effective means of increasing enrollment for military spouses, but other barriers to education for this population may also need to be addressed. Chapter 3 examines the impact of a change in the tax treatment of savings set aside for higher education by those who decide to suspend their education and enter the workforce. The taxation of these funds appears to have increased the rate at which these funds are included in an employee's initial contract and the quantity of funds allocated. These results are counterintuitive if the tax preference was the primary reason for the savings plan. However, these results suggest the rationale for the savings plan was to offer targeted additional compensation to recruits with greater negotiating power. Taxation of funds previously set aside did not appear to have a statistically significant impact on their utilization. Point estimates of the price sensitivity of demand from changes in the out-of-pocket costs for higher education induced by the taxation of these funds were small and often not statistically significant. The results from this dissertation show responses to changes in the net cost of college that differ by the source of price variation and the population experiencing them. This is consistent with the previous literature. This dissertation contributes to the literature by providing estimates for the price sensitivity of demand for higher education to previously understudied non-traditional students.

UN-consistent : a comparison of Australia's military interventions in Somalia and Rwanda

This article seeks to compare Australia's involvement in two key 1990s peace missions: those to Somalia in 1992-93 and Rwanda in 1994-95. While there are many similarities between the two missions in terms of time, scale and theatre, the differences are more important. Both missions are usually recalled as failures despite the Australian troops having been extremely successful in their roles during both deployments. Moreover the experiences with intervention in Africa seem to have forever blighted Australian participation in peace missions on that continent.