Adapting to College Life After Military Service

Abstract

This study explores how student veterans draw on principles of self-determination theory, focusing on the learning processes shaping their abilities to adapt to new environments, namely college. By developing intrinsic motivation, student veterans successfully embrace their college student identities. Using a case study method along with self-determination theory, this study demonstrates how characteristics of intrinsic motivation assisted student veterans to shape their development as college students. As such, student veterans were enabled to become self-determined, which fostered their transition to the college environment. Implications for higher education practitioners and counselors are discussed.

Facilitating United States Service Members’ Transition Out of the Military: A Self-Determination Theory Perspective

“…Prior to data analysis, each interview was transcribed verbatim (resulting in over 350 pages of single-spaced transcripts) and the individual transcript was sent to the respective participant as a form of member reflection (Tracy, 2010); no modifications were requested. The interview guide was developed based on an in-depth review of relevant literature (e.g., Lechuga et al, 2021;Ntoumanis et al, 2009) as well as utilizing protocols that have been used in previous research to explore perceptions of the three basic psychological needs in the military and sport (e.g., Raabe et al, 2020Raabe et al, , 2021Raabe et al, , 2022. Interview questions were structured into four sections.…”

“…The interview guide was developed based on an in-depth review of relevant literature (e.g., Lechuga et al, 2021; Ntoumanis et al, 2009) as well as utilizing protocols that have been used in previous research to explore perceptions of the three basic psychological needs in the military and sport (e.g., Raabe et al, 2020, 2021, 2022). Interview questions were structured into four sections.…”

“…Recently, Lechuga et al (2021) utilized self-determination theory in their case study to explore veterans’ transition to college life at a single university and highlighted the role of the basic psychological needs in fostering individuals’ motivation in their new student role. Raabe et al (2020) similarly employed a self-determination theory framework to better understand professional baseball players’ transition out of sport and concluded that “high levels of perceived autonomy, competence, and relatedness might act as a buffer between potential stressors in the transition process and athletes’ cognitive, emotional, and behavioral response” (p. 9).…”