Human Resource Development

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    Disparity : threat or opportunity to distance education throughput at the South African military academy
    (Stellenbosch University, Faculty of Military Science (Military Academy), 2015) Khoza, Lindiwe; Van Zyl, Gerhard
    Improved student throughput remains on the South African Higher Education (HE) priority list. To achieve greater throughput, all institutions of higher learning need to contribute. The South African Military Academy offers distance education (DE) programmes to employees of the South African Department of Defence (DoD). Its distance education (DE) programme, earmarked to become the main HE provider to the DoD, compared to its residential programmes, displays poor throughput. Poor DE throughput contradicts recent advances in educational technologies which provide a range of mitigation and support opportunities through the creation of learning spaces that mediate successful student learning anytime anywhere. This article contributes to the body of knowledge on firstly the disparate profile of Military Academy DE students, and secondly, their disparate access to learning technologies in their working and learning spaces. A survey among DE undergraduates and DE lecturers revealed disparity among respective DE students’ HE-related demographics, and disparity in their access to learning technologies (LT). Resolving disparity in access to LT can mitigate demographic disparity to promote graduate throughput.
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    The effect of conscientiousness, openness to experience, and neuroticism on military identity in a South African military university: the moderating role of Selflessness
    (Stellenbosch : Stellenbosch University, 2023-12) Solomons, Timothy Lydhann Dugald; Mthembu, Oscar Sandile; Stellenbosch University. Faculty of Military Sciences. School for Human Research Development. Dept. of Industrial Psychology.
    ENGLISH ABSTRACT: Identification with the organisation an individual is working for has been associated with performance (He & Brown, 2013), positive attitude, positive work outcomes, etc.; it is therefore very important to study. According to Rao et al. (2019), being associated with an organisation can develop pride in members and lead to organisational identification among employees. The aim of this research was to investigate the effect of personality traits such as Conscientiousness, Openness to Experience, and Neuroticism on Military Identity, as well as to establish the moderating role of Selflessness in these relationships. The purpose of this study was to make a commitment to reduce the capital and time that the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) invests in people who join the forces for personal gain and self-satisfaction. The findings of this report will be discussed with SANDF recruiting staff to realign recruitment and hiring requirements and procedures. A survey research design with the use of questionnaires was utilised. The questionnaires were administered at one point in time within the normal environment of students at the national military university with no interference from the researcher. The following instruments were used to gather information from the participants. The first scale was the Big Five Inventory consisting of 44 items (John & Srivastava, 1999), the selfless scale (Dambrun, 2017), and the Norwegian Professional Identity Scale developed by Johansen et al. (2013) to measure Military Identity. The Statistical Package for the Social Sciences version 27 (IBM, 2021) was used to conduct reliability and dimensionality analyses on the collected data. Confirmatory factor analyses for each scale were conducted. The revised measurement and structural model can generally be regarded as good. Measurement and structural models were fitted to the data using structural equation modelling through Linear Structural Relationships. The findings indicated a positive relationship between Conscientiousness and Military Identity; a positive relationship between Openness to Experience and Military Identity; and a significant negative relationship between Neuroticism and Military Identity. The findings also indicated that different levels of Selflessness had a significant impact on the level of Military Identity when Conscientiousness was set as the predictor; different levels of Selflessness had a significant impact on the level of Military Identity when Openness to Experience was set as the predictor; and different levels of Selflessness had a significant impact on the level of Military Identity when Neuroticism was set as the predictor. The limitations of the study and recommendations for future studies are presented at the end of the report. This study’s findings will help the SANDF to implement better recruitment strategies.
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    Suicide prevention and management in the SA National Defence Force : a psychological discussion
    (Stellenbosch University, Faculty of Military Science, 2012) Koopman, Rene; Van Dyk, Gielie
    Suicidal behaviour is a challenge for military forces around the world. Suicide can be a reaction in peacekeeping operations or conventional warfare, because the stressful nature of both types of operations can force military members to such a catastrophic end. This article focuses on the necessary knowledge and skills for a better understanding of suicidal behaviour in the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) for members on different levels. It discusses the operational environment, with specific reference to peacekeeping operations or conventional warfare as contributing factors, risk factors, and the prevention and proper management of suicide by means of educating commanders and members of the multi-professional team (MPT).
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    Taking the lonely walk in Iraq and Afghanistan
    (Stellenbosch University, Faculty of Military Science (Military Academy), 2014) Beukes, T.
    "Eight lives down", "Extreme risk" and "Bomb hunters" all contain the personal accounts of British soldiers who served as bomb-disposal operators during the recent armed conflicts in Iraq and Afghanistan. The books were not written as scholarly works intended for an academic audience. Serious students of contemporary armed conflict nevertheless would find them useful reading material. The books should be particularly useful to scholars with a professional interest in asymmetric warfare or the emerging role of improvised explosive devices in contemporary armed conflict.