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Attitude changes during and after long submarine missions
Undersea Biomedical Research
|January 1, 1979
Summary
Submarine missions negatively impact crew attitudes, which recover during rehabilitation but do not accumulate over time. Attitudes toward mission realities improved faster than those related to long-term goal achievement.
Area of Science:
- Human factors
- Psychology
- Military science
Background:
- Long submarine missions present unique psychological challenges.
- Assessing crew attitude changes is crucial for operational effectiveness.
Purpose of the Study:
- To evaluate attitude shifts in submarine crews during extended submerged missions.
- To understand the recovery patterns of these attitudes.
Main Methods:
- Administered the Submarine Attitude Questionnaire to 202 crew members before and after two 55-day submerged missions.
- Included a 2-month rehabilitation period between missions.
Main Results:
- Most attitudes became negative during submergence, reversing during rehabilitation.
- No cumulative attitude effects were observed across successive missions.
- Attitudes toward mission realities recovered faster than those related to long-term goal achievement.
Conclusions:
- Submarine missions induce significant, but generally reversible, attitude changes.
- Long-term expectancies are more vulnerable to negative shifts than immediate mission realities.
- Strategies to mitigate negative attitude changes during prolonged deployments are warranted.