Social Support and Coping Adaptability in Initial Military Training

Social support and coping adaptability were explored as factors leading to successful outcomes in initial military training. Hierarchical regression and bootstrapping of indirect effects were used to explore these relationships in a sample of 2,293 New Zealand Defence Force trainees. Support from instructors was related to lower difficulty coping and higher performance and military belonging. Support from external sources was related to higher coping adaptability, performance, military belonging, and, paradoxically, increased difficulty coping. Coping adaptability mediated the beneficial effects of external support. Resources provided by different sources of support, applications, limitations, and directions for future research are discussed.