A narrative inquiry into the resettlement of armed forces personnel in the Arabian Gulf: a model for successful transition and positive mental well-being

Abstract

Background: The study sought to explore the lived experiences of individuals having served in the Armed Forces of Saudi Arabia, as they made the transition to civilian life and sought new employment opportunities.     Methods: Researchers carried out qualitative research in the form of narrative inquiry. Narratives were collected from eleven in-depth interviews conducted in Saudi Arabia in 2021, allowed for insight into participant experiences. Existing literature on military retirement was also investigated. Results: Interviews were transcribed verbatim and analyzed concurrently using thematic analysis to identify patterns or themes. The researchers adopted thematic synthesis as an analytical framework though which descriptive themes from the literature on military retirement were generated. Overall, this approach allowed for the comparison of themes in literature with those of narrative interviews. Conclusion: The study identified challenges encountered by veterans during the resettlement and transitional phase from military to civilian life. There was a general consensus, however, that military life equips individuals with valuable skills that are transferrable to successful post-military employment, known as Positive Transferable Adaptability for Employability (PTAE), (Mottershead, 2019), which can greatly empower those making the transition. These findings led the researchers to develop a new model for veteran career paths that meet the contemporary employment needs of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia: the REVERE Transition Model, which identifies six career paths.