The experience of transitioning from the armed forces to the civilian workforce as a result of service-connected disabilities /by Sean S. Burlile.

The United States military is being deployed throughout the world in large numbers. These deployments bring with them the threat of armed conflict, create high levels of stress and trauma, and inflict numerous injuries upon our men and women in uniform. As a result of their service, many members of the military sustain service-connected disabilities and are forced to transition to a civilian community that they are not always prepared to face. This study examines the experience of transitioning from the armed forces to the civilian workforce as a result of service-connected disabilities.;Mezirow's theory of transformative learning provided a conceptual framework for this phenomenological inquiry. Mezirow (1990; 1991; 1996; 2000) explained transformative learning as an expansion of consciousness in any human [system], the collective as well as the individual. This expanded consciousness is characterized by new frames of reference, points of view, or habits of mind, as well as by new structures for engaging [the systems] identity. The purpose of this study is to understand the lived experience of transitioning from the armed forces to the civilian workforce as a result of service-connected disabilities. Through this study the transformative learning of disabled veterans are examined and reported in the findings of the experience of the phenomenon.;The research question that guided this study was, """"What are the lived experiences of transitioning from the armed forces to the civilian workforce as a result of service-connected disabilities?"""" The study involved ten participants who had processed through the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Vocational Rehabilitation and Employment program. Data was collected through interviews which were audio taped, transcribed, and analyzed.;Seven major themes emerged from the data analysis process. Theme one - fear and anxiety, theme two - culture shock, theme three - disconnect, theme four - medical ignorance, theme five - uncertainty, theme six - loss, and theme seven - transformation. Each participant had suffered varying levels of hardship as a result of transitioning from the armed forces to the civilian workforce as of service-connected disabilities, but each of the participants experienced some form of transformative learning that we, as researchers, can learn from and continue to study to add to the scholarly academic body of knowledge.;Recommendations from the thematic findings include further research that will help improve transition services for disabled veterans. Implications for adult education and lifelong growth, development, and change are numerous.Thesis (Ph. D., Education)--University of Idaho, November 12, 2007