Page 111 - JSOM Fall 2020

An Ongoing Series

Applications of the SOCOM Spiritual Fitness Scale

Program Development and Tailored Coaching for Optimized Performance

David William Alexander, PhD

ABSTRACT
The SOCOM Spiritual Fitness Scale (SSFS) enables religious University Religion Index, and they appear to capture some
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support teams and other spiritual fitness/performance (SF/SP) aspects of SF. Well-designed metrics related to perceptions of
stakeholders in the Special Operations Forces community to the divine and spiritual struggle also seem to capture certain as-
reliably measure both “horizontal” and “vertical” dimensions pects of SF, such as the Religious and Spiritual Struggles Scale.
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of spirituality, as defined by the chairman of the Joint Chiefs However, all these metrics assume a theistic worldview, and the
of Staff Instruction on SF. The SSFS’s three subscales relate to CJCSI definition does not. In addition, none of these metrics
core attributes of SF/SP, which were identified through factor were developed with an operationalized focus on military per-
analysis during the iterations of the tool’s development. The formance. Because of this gap in metrical coverage, the Spiri-
SSFS is capable of generating baseline assessments for research tuality & Performance (S&P) Research Program team at the
related to SF/SP. It is also capable of generating unique SF/SP Consortium for Health and Military Performance (CHAMP)
profiles for individuals and groups, which can shape programs partnered with POTFF to develop and validate a new metric,
and inform tailored coaching for optimized performance. the SSFS. The SSFS is capable of bridging the SP domain of
POTFF and the CJCSI definition to the lived and operational
Keywords: spirituality; spiritual metric; spiritual fitness; hu- experiences of Special Operations Forces (SOF) Operators and
man performance optimization; total force fitness other military Servicemembers (MSM): it can be used as a tool
to evaluate programs designed to enhance SF/SP and inform
tailored SF/SP coaching for optimized performance.
Introduction
Applications of the SSFS
SF/SP is a vital domain within the USSOCOM Preservation
of the Force and Family (POTFF) and the DoD Total Force The SSFS is broad enough in its scope of inquiry to encompass
Fitness (TFF) frameworks. SF/SP contains unique aspects of the totality of the CJCSI definition of SF and the intentions of
human flourishing but also interacts with and complements the POTFF SP program. Its multidimensional structure yields
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every other domain. To develop and maintain adequate pro- data that are sufficiently complex to support the elusive work
grams to support and optimize SF/SP, chaplains and other of SF/SP profiling. However, the SSFS is also concise and does
SF/SP stakeholders require crisp definitions and disciplined not represent a significant burden for respondents, who are
frameworks for identifying and measuring SF/SP outcomes. usually able to complete the 17 items in less than 7 minutes.
Many researchers have noted the elusiveness of spirituality as Unlike most existing scales related to spirituality, the SSFS
a paradigm and recognized the challenges of conceptualizing does not assume a theistic worldview. It is both reliable and
appropriate methodologies for metrics development. 2–5 psychometrically sound and represents a unique realignment
of the publicly available scales for spirituality toward SF/SP
Although SF/SP researchers have the advantage of being and HPO.
guided by the established and normative definition for SF
listed in Chairman of the Joint Chiefs of Staff Instruction The SSFS is a useful tool for developing baseline assessments to
(CJCSI) 3405.01 as “the ability to adhere to beliefs, principles, inform continuing quantitative and mixed-methods research
or values needed to persevere and prevail in accomplishing related to SF/SP, including longitudinal studies. However, it is
missions” (2011, A-2), existing measures related to spirituality also useful in the pursuit of two elusive activities essential to
available in the public domain are not particularly well aligned developing SF/SP as unique dimensions of both POTFF and
to this definition. Many well-validated and widely used met- TFF/HPO: (1) SF/SP program development and (2) tailored
rics related to spiritual commitment exist, such as the Duke coaching for SF/SP, to support performance optimization of
Correspondence to Uniformed Services University, 4301 Jones Bridge Road, Bethesda, MD 20814 or david.alexander@usuhs.edu
Dr Alexander is assistant professor and research team leader at the Consortium for Health and Military Performance, Department of Military
and Emergency Medicine, F. Edward Hébert School of Medicine, Uniformed Services University, Bethesda, MD.

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