Feasibility and preliminary effectiveness of mobile cognitive control training during basic combat training in the military

Periods of stressful events, such as those experienced during combat training in the military, may lead to psychological distress and reduced quality of life (QoL). Mental resilience, the capacity to overcome negative effects of setbacks on performance, may help protect one from the adversities associated with basic combat training. Among the factors contributing to mental resilience is cognitive control, the mechanism which helps maintain our goal directed behavior. Here we examined the feasibility of a mobile cognitive control training (CCT) app to engage young adults during their basic military training with the intention of improving resilience, mental health and QoL. 153 participants were randomly assigned to complete 2-3 weeks of either mobile CCT (n = 74) or active control training (ACT, mobile games; n = 79). Resilience, QoL, mood and self-efficacy were assessed at baseline and post-intervention. Participants completed, on average, 7.28 ± 3.03 training sessions (out of the planned 14), indicating relatively low feasibility of CCT during basic combat training period and inconsistent engagement with training. In addition, there was lack of improvement in the training tasks (‘target engagement’). Accordingly, no significant time by group interactions were found on any of the outcome measures, potentially due to the limited feasibility. We conclude that short-term mobile CCT has low feasibility during basic combat training and discuss the results of this study considering factors that might have contributed to the lack of feasibility of the training protocol.

军队基础战斗训练期间经历的高压事件阶段，可能引发心理困扰并降低生活质量（Quality of Life，QoL）。心理韧性（mental resilience）指个体克服挫折对行为表现产生负面影响的能力，可帮助个体抵御基础战斗训练相关的逆境。认知控制（cognitive control）作为维持目标导向行为的核心机制，是影响心理韧性的关键因素之一。本研究针对参与基础军事训练的年轻成年人，探讨了移动认知控制训练（mobile cognitive control training，CCT）应用程序的可行性，以期提升其心理韧性、心理健康水平与生活质量。本研究共纳入153名受试者，通过随机分配将其分为两组：移动CCT组（n=74）与主动对照训练（active control training，ACT，即移动游戏训练）组（n=79），两组均需完成2至3周的训练干预。分别在干预前（基线）与干预后对受试者的心理韧性、生活质量、情绪状态与自我效能感进行评估。受试者平均完成7.28±3.03次训练课程（计划总课程数为14次），结果显示基础战斗训练期间CCT的可行性相对较低，且受试者对训练的参与度存在显著不一致性。此外，训练任务中的“目标参与度”未出现显著提升。相应地，所有结局指标均未观察到显著的时间×组交互效应，这可能与训练可行性有限直接相关。综上，短期移动CCT在基础战斗训练期间的可行性较低；本研究最后结合可能影响该训练方案可行性的相关因素，对研究结果展开了讨论。