Measurement validity of the six-factor model of psychological well-being in a military sample: Implications for measuring well-being in service members

Psychol Assess. 2023 Sep;35(9):729-739. doi: 10.1037/pas0001239. Epub 2023 Jul 20.

Abstract

Subjective well-being is a positive psychological construct that has important implications for the U.S. Military's goal to develop service members' strengths and support their overall thriving and downstream resilience. Despite this, the concept of well-being has not been well studied in military populations who have unique work demands, stressors, and autonomy/agency in daily life compared to civilians. To address this shortcoming in the literature, the present study assessed Ryff's measures of psychological well-being (PWB) in 1,333 U.S. service members prior to the deployments in the Middle East. Various methods attempting to validate the theoretical model purported by Ryff were unsuccessful, and exploratory factor analyses did not result in a novel model for this population. Future research should continue to evaluate proposed models of soldier well-being and propose novel theories, as well as measures, to assess this important construct. Implications are discussed. (PsycInfo Database Record (c) 2023 APA, all rights reserved).

MeSH terms

  • Humans
  • Military Personnel* / psychology
  • Psychological Well-Being