Psychological Adjustment and Retention of Australian Army Reservists Following a Stability Operation

Abstract

Australian Army reservists (n=92) and a comparable group of regulars (n=90) were surveyed at the end of a 7-month deployment on a stability operation in Timor Leste and again approximately 6 months after returning to Australia. Both reservists and regulars displayed sound mental health, as measured by the K10 and PCL-C at both time points. Conversely, both groups reported only low levels of traumatic stress (Traumatic Stress Exposure Scale-Revised) and nontraumatic stress (Major Stressors Inventory). The nontraumatic stress reported by the reservists emanated predominately from work-related frustrations, more so than the regulars. Notwithstanding their reports of work-related stress and only average morale, 65% of the reservists reported that deployment was a positive experience, and 70% continued to render ongoing military service continuously over a 6-year follow-up, significantly more than either the sample of regulars (48%) or projections for reservists (32%). Future directions for research are identified that may promote mental health and retention of reservists.