Page 90 - JSOM Fall 2023

realm will assist in clarifying practical and ethical boundaries TABLE 2 Gaps and Recommendations
for those professionals tasked with supporting social fitness Gaps Recommendations
efforts. In addition, a clear social fitness definition can gener- Lack of social fitness Create a broad-based definition
ate greater collaborative opportunities between professionals definition to include the impact of the social
from all three of these important domains. 13 environment on the individual and
vice versa.
Several challenges are identifiable as a result of unclear bound- Absence of social fitness SMEs in various domains should
aries within the TFF framework of social domain program, integrated with other work together to create integrated
each equally important and all interrelated. The first challenge domains programming.
of social fitness programs is the need to clearly articulate and No application or systematic Create community-based initiatives
differentiate a few aspects of the social domain from other approach of social fitness to meet the unique needs of
Servicemembers in harmony with
programs to meet the
TFF domains. For example, culture, organizational climate, needs of Servicemember community needs over time.
and team cohesion are generally included squarely within the populations
realm of the social domain, but like culture, they are often SMEs = subject matter experts
14
discussed in broad terms with little definitional clarity. With-
out exploring the social forces that underpin culture, terms The social fitness domain integrates with all of the TFF do-
such as “cultural drift” are used to explain and account for mains, similar to how relationships and social influences per-
violations of core values, diversity, equity, and inclusion issues, meate all aspects of life. Therefore, it should be considered
organizational challenges, resulting in a general catch-all for a powerful factor in all health and performance efforts. For
undesirable behavior. These types of undesirable behaviors are example, Servicemembers’ decision-making revolving around
often attributed to individual shortcomings, and not necessar- exercise behaviors, nutrition habits, and sleep hygiene could
ily linked to tacit social approval embedded in group behavior. be influenced by the nature and quality of their social rela-
tionships and by the social context and environment in which
The second challenge is that items in the social domain, such as these decisions are made. Social fitness programs can act as a
culture, are not owned by a single entity. Social climate, culture, lever to support performance outcomes. Physical fitness pro-
and values are—in many ways—the responsibility of leadership, grams should consider intentionally leveraging social support
but are not formalized as such in promotional criteria. Uni- to help Servicemembers meet exercise and fitness goals. Nutri-
formed Servicemembers at higher ranks do have mechanisms to tion programs should shed light on the role of social context
capture challenges within the social environment of their units, and the social nature of food factor in a Servicemember’s food
such as annual climate assessments, but there are difficulties in choices. On the other hand, social fitness can quickly become
addressing the issues raised. This is particularly true when issues a performance degrader, if not understood and accounted for
are identified within the supervisory level, or when Servicemem- fully, thus highlighting the need for clarity in the social domain.
bers feel they cannot provide candid responses in standard re-
porting mechanisms and to chains of command. Social fitness skills and interpersonal dynamics represent a
unique field. Therefore, social fitness should be addressed as
A third challenge for social fitness programs is the fact that its own domain of wellness across all services. The overlapping
the social domain is not unique to any single individual but nature of TFF suggests that if unique and distinct professionals
is shared between individuals who influence and are in turn are assigned to each TFF domain, they must work in concert
influenced by their social and physical environment. Social to successfully contribute to the well-being of Servicemembers.
connections can affect behavior—for better and for worse— Professionals must synergically work with one another to ad-
depending on the norms being enforced and modeled. For dress social fitness needs alongside psychological, spiritual,
example, unit cohesion can be a source of critical social sup- and other needs. Professionals within each domain must un-
port during stressful times, but cohesion can also contribute derstand the limitations of their training and competence and
to the reinforcement and reproduction of unhealthy behaviors seek to build a multi-disciplinary referral network.
such as substance abuse and harassment. As a shared connec-
tion between people, the social domain requires a systematic To enable greater precision of social fitness programs, initia-
approach from a variety of stakeholders. Various programs tives should be targeted and tailored to the needs of the com-
have been introduced as stated in Social Fitness Providers for munity. Communities are unique entities that bring together
Health and Performance above to increase or bolster social an array of influences from diverse members and are not a
fitness. These programs may see greater return on investment one-size-fits-all program. Therefore, social fitness programs
if the above challenges are addressed directly. must be dynamic and rooted in the specific needs of each
community. The needs of any community, especially a military
community, are bound to change over time as new members
Future Directions and Conclusion
enter and others move on. New initiatives should be created
This review highlights key issues related to defining, address- with this in mind.
ing, and deploying programs to support social fitness in the
military context, and underscores the need to manage the cur- The specific limitations of a population should also be consid-
rent challenges in the social domain. To move this important ered in social fitness programs. For SOF, operational security
domain forward, the following areas should be addressed: (1) limits the amount of communication possible between Opera-
conceptually clarifying the social fitness definition; (2) under- tors/enablers and their family members. Such limitations must
standing how to address social fitness through an integrated be factored into discussions to improve familial dynamics and
lens with other domains; and (3) improving the application systems of social support. While social fitness domains are of-
and systematic approach of social fitness programs to meet the ten integrated within holistic TFF programs, the emphasis of
needs of Servicemember populations (Table 2). such programs are highly focused on familial dynamics and

88 | JSOM Volume 23, Edition 3 / Fall 2023