Role of personality, coping and mindfulness in adaptation to complex or unpredictable situations in special forces

Military operations take place in increasingly complex and unpredictable contexts. Faced with these contexts, the adaptive abilities of military operators are challenged. This study aimed at identifying the role of personality factors, coping styles and mindfulness disposition in the management of unpredictable situations. The adaptive performance of 72 applicants to the Special Forces (SF) Unit of the French National Gendarmerie was assessed by SF instructors during the selection process during which they were exposed to various unpredictable situations. Applicants’ conative factors were measured using questionnaires. Low levels of neuroticism and of emotion-oriented coping, and a high level of mindfulness disposition increased an applicant’s chances of success by 5 to 9 times. The results confirm the value of studying the role of conative factors, notably thinking dispositions in adaptive performance. They also provide support for the development of new training programs to strengthen adaptive abilities of military operators faced with unpredictable situations.