Psychobiological Assessment and Enhancement of Team Cohesion and Psychological Resilience in ROTC Cadets Using a Virtual-Reality Team Cohesion Test
Abstract
Unit cohesion refers to the strength of the interpersonal bonds uniting members of a group. Members of more cohesive groups are more willing to coordinate their efforts, more cooperative with and supportive of each other, and more effective in achieving the group s goals. Extensive research indicates that being a member of a military unit with high cohesion provides significant protection against the negative psychological health effects of experiencing war trauma. For example, members of a more cohesive unit are at reduced risk for the development of post-traumatic stress, alcoholism, suicidality, and depression after returning home from war. Furthermore, military units that have higher cohesion are also more ready for and more effective in combat. Given the enormous benefits of high unit cohesion, the question arises: What determines unit cohesion and how can unit cohesion be enhanced? There are several components that allow a person to develop into a highly cohesive group member. One potential predictor of someone s ability to become a member of a highly cohesive group is the extent to which he is pro-socially oriented -- a personality trait characterized by an inclination to focus on and enhance the welfare of others. Another potential predictor of someone s ability to become a member of a cohesive team is the extent to which he unconsciously synchronizes his posture, gestures, mannerisms, and autonomic physiology during interactions with others. Such "behavioral and physiological synchrony" occurs below the level of consciousness and has profound social effects. For example, if two subjects are experimentally "tricked" into synchronizing their behavior (by, for example, marching in step), they will develop increased cooperation and trust with each other. These studies suggest that it is possible to predict an individual s ability to develop into a cohesive team member by measuring their pro-social orientation and their propensity to develop behavioral and physiological cohesion. We will investigate this possibility in the current study. Oxytocin is a hormone produced in the brain that has been implicated in multiple processes such as trust and bonding that are critical for cohesion. For example, the oxytocin system is critical for the formation of emotional bonds between people, and people with higher levels of oxytocin have been found to be more trusting and cooperative. Furthermore, oxytocin can be safely administered intranasally to humans and has been shown to increase how much individuals cooperate with and sacrifice for their teams. Given these features, we believe that the oxytocin system is a promising point of entry into investigating the biological mechanisms of cohesion and that intranasal administration of oxytocin may directly increase team cohesion. We will conduct a series of experiments to (1) determine whether an individual s personality traits, propensity to develop behavioral and physiological synchrony, and oxytocin levels predict their ability to be a highly cohesive team member, and (2) determine whether oxytocin administration enhances the development of team cohesion. For these studies, we will recruit and study Reserve Officer Training Corps (ROTC) cadets and midshipmen in order to make sure that our findings are highly relevant to the military. The results obtained from these experiments will provide important new insights into the biology of unit cohesion and may lead to (1) the ability to screen individuals and teams for characteristics that promote or hinder the development of unit cohesion, and (2) the development of a novel pharmacological intervention to enhance unit cohesion. In other words, the information we learn could lead to the development of drug and non-drug interventions to increase unit cohesion, which would lead to significant health and performance benefits for Warfighters, their families, society, and the military. Indeed, oxytocin may become a power
Document Details
- Document Type
- DoD Grant Award
- Publication Date
- Apr 04, 2016
- Source ID
- W81XWH1510042
Entities
People
- Josh Woolley
Organizations
- Northern California Institute for Research and Education
- United States Army