WRAIR “BATTLEMIND” from Combat to Community29,30
| Military vs. Community | Service Member (SM) in Combat | SM at Home | |
|---|---|---|---|
| B | Buddies (cohesion) vs. withdrawal | No one understands SM's experience except buddies who were there; life depended on trust in unit. | SM may prefer to be with battle buddies rather than spouse, family, or friends; may assume that only those who were with SM in combat understand or are interested. |
| A | Accountability vs. control | Maintaining control of weapon and gear is necessary for survival; all personal items are important to SM. | SM may become angry when someone moves or messes with SM's stuff; may think that nobody except the SM cares about doing things right. |
| T | Targeted vs. inappropriate aggression | Split-second decisions that are lethal in highly ambiguous environments are necessary. Kill or be killed. Anger keeps SM pumped up, alert, awake, and alive. | SM may have hostility toward others; may display inappropriate anger or snap at buddies or NCOs; may overreact to minor insults. |
| T | Tactical awareness vs. hypervigilance | Survival depends on being aware of surroundings at all times and reacting immediately to sudden changes, such as sniper fire or mortar attacks. | SM may feel keyed up or anxious in large groups or situations where feels confined; may feel easily startled, especially when SM hears loud noises; may have difficulty sleeping or have nightmares. |
| L | Lethally armed vs. locked and loaded at home | Carrying a weapon at all times is mandatory and a matter of life or death | SM may feel a need to have weapons, in home and car at all times, believing that SM and loved ones are not safe without them |
| E | Emotional control vs. anger/detachment | Controlling emotions during combat is critical for mission success and quickly becomes second nature | Failing to display emotions around family and friends will hurt relationships; may be seen as detached and uncaring. |
| M | Mission operational security vs. secretiveness | SM talks about the mission only with those who need to know; can only talk about combat experiences with unit members | May avoid sharing any of deployment experiences with family, spouse and friends. |
| I | Individual responsibility vs. guilt | SM's responsibility is to survive and do his best to keep buddies alive. | SM may feel has failed buddies if they were killed or seriously injured; may be bothered by memories of those wounded or killed. |
| N | Non-defensive (combat) vs. aggressive driving | Driving unpredictably, fast, using rapid direction changes and keeping other vehicles at a distance is designed to avoid IEDs and VBEDs. | Aggressive driving and straddling the middle line leads to speeding tickets, accidents, and fatalities. |
| D | Discipline and ordering vs. conflict | Survival depends on discipline and obeying orders. | Inflexible interactions (ordering and demanding behavior) with spouse, children, and friends often leads to conflict. |