Military Psychology

After reading this, U’ll b able to

• Define Military Psychology
• Trace its History
• Identify its Scope
• Say something how Psychology is applied in Military
• Understand the role of Military Psychologist in Indian Military

Definition: Military Psychology

“ A straightforward and succinct guide into the assessment and treatment of modern service members…”

  -The Military Psychologist: The Official Newsletter of Division 19 of the APA

 “A wide range of expert contributors present crucial knowledge to professionals providing psychological services for military and intelligence personnel, or working to enhance operational readiness…”

-Armed Forces and Society

Historical Overview

World War I (1914-1918 AD)

The US Military

American Psychological Association

To assist the Military

Mental Testing of Recruits

Group Intelligence Testing (for both military and civilian applications)

Measurement of troop moral and assimilation into the military

Assessment of emotional instability

Development of special trade tests to asses skills, such as combat leadership and flying aptitude

Immediately after the war . . .

• Conducted Surveys to asses the attitudes of soldiers,
• including their opinions about their own military service
• After the break 1920's & 1930's
• Start of World War II – 1939
• More than 2,000 psychologists(civilian and uniformed) addressed
• military problems.

“Military psychology was born in the first World War & matured in World War II”

• They use Psychology in
  Military leadership
• Effects of environmental factors on human performance
• Military intelligence
• Psychological operations and warfare
• Selection for special duties
• Influences of personal background, attitudes, and the work group on soldier motivation and morals.

Military Psychology Now

(a) Working in mental health or family counseling clinics to improve the lives of service personnel and their families

(b) Performing research to select recruits into the service and assign them to one of many possible jobs, and

(c) Analyses of humanitarian and peacekeeping missions to determine procedures that could save military and civilian lives.

1. Improve the lives of service personnel and their families
   Fitness-for-duty evaluations
2. Suicide risk assessment and prevention
3. Substance abuse treatment
4. Brief psychotherapy

Performing Research

• Developing Psychological Tools
• Follow ups
• Effects of Interventions given
• Evaluating & Reviving  the Policies
• Analyses of humanitarian and peacekeeping missions

Survival Training

• Weapons of Mass Destruction
• Terrorist Psychology
• Hostage Negotiation
• Disaster Response.

Military Psychology in Indian Army

• Started by English during I World War
• Software Based Psychometric Tests for Selection
• Single Time Used Tests
• TAT
• Situation Tests
• Word Association Tests