Politics and World Affairs
Book Details

Military Stress and Performance

The Australian Defence Force experience

George E. Kearney, Mark Creamer, Ric Marshall and Anne Goyne (eds)

Foreword by General Peter Cosgrove

Focuses on the impact and methods of dealing with stress in a military environment based on research in the Australian Defence Force

Opinion

'The stories in Military Stress and Performance hide little in their effort to explore issues vital to us all, however confronting they may be.' (Ballarat Courier, 9/11/2003)

Military Stress and Performance 'can be distinguished from other books addressing similar topics by the experience of the authors and the currency of the information. It combines the insights of some of Australia's foremost researchers and practitioners in the field with the experiences of currently serving officers.' (Defender, Spring 2003)

About this Title

People comprise the backbone of any military force. But what happens when the stress of operations becomes overwhelming and those people fail to cope? Stress can have negative consequences for the individual, the organisation, and even for overall combat effectiveness.

The Australian Defence Force has spent many years researching how to maximise individual resilience and performance in the face of extreme stress. For the first time this wealth of knowledge and experience has been brought together in one volume. This work examines the impact of highly stressful events, such as combat and peacekeeping operations, on individual troops and leaders, with a particular focus on factors that build resilience and maximise performance under stress.

Managing stress is an important issue not only for the military, but equally for other high-risk professions such as the police and emergency services. This work provides a unique synthesis of a wide range of research, and clinical and personal experience, providing a coherent, integrated approach to the subject.
Of particular use to mental health professionals, it will also be of interest to general readers of military and psychology books.

Table of Contents

Contents
Foreword General Peter J. Cosgrove Acknowledgements

Introduction
The Stress Phenomenon
1 The Stress of Deployment Peter J. Murphy
2 Psychological Preparation for the Battlefield Carlene Wilson, Helen Braithwaite and Peter J. Murphy
3 Managing Stress in Deployed Operations Ric Marshall
Enabling Resilience
4 Psychological Support to Australian Defence Force Operations: A Decade of Transformation Peter J. Murphy, Robert S. Collyer, Anthony J. Cotton and Martin Levey
5 Stress Resilience and Combat: Should Gender be an Issue?Anne Goyne
6 Command at Sea in War and Peace Lee Cordner
7 Critical Incident Stress Management and the Pastoral Imperative Dennis Hills
Health and Welfare after Deployment
8 Providing Support in Long-term Hostage Incidents: A Case Study of CARE Australia Personnel Peter J. Murphy, Gordon Turnbull and Walter Busuttil
9 Post deployment Support Peter J. Murphy
10 Post deployment Predictors of Traumatic Stress: Rwanda, A Case Study Stephanie Hodson, David Ward and Ron Rapee
11 Assessment of Posttraumatic Stress Jagdish Dua and Wayne Scott
12 Long-term Effects of Traumatic Stress Mark Creamer and David Forbes

Caring for Causalities
13 Constructs of Recovery and Prevention following Trauma in Navy Veterans Stephen P. S. Rayner and Linda L. Viney
14 The Treatment of Chronic Posttraumatic Stress Disorder David Forbes and Mark Creamer

Reflections on Managing Stress
15 Stress and the Military: What Have We Learned?George E. Kearney
Abbreviations Contributors Bibliography Index

About the Author

Professor George E. Kearney was foundation Deputy Vice-Chancellor at Griffith University, and is currently Colonel Commandant of the Australian Army Psychology Corps.

Professor Mark Creamer is Director of the National Centre for Posttraumatic Health and Professor in the Department of Psychiatry at the University of Melbourne. He is a clinical psychologist with many years of experience in the field of traumatic stress from both research and clinical perspectives.

Dr Ric Marshall was the foundation National Director of the Vietnam Veterans Counselling Service. He is currently head of hospital services performance evaluation with the Victorian Department of Human Services.

Major Anne Goyne is a clinical psychologist with the Defence Force Psychology Organisation in Canberra. She completed a Master of Clinical Psychology at the Australian National University and has had a long involvement with military research.

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978-0-522-85054-3