Bridging the Gap: An Integrative Review of Research on Veterans’ Transition to the Civilian Workforce

Abstract

The uniformed personnel who deploy around the world provide a key service to their country and often do so by putting themselves in dangerous situations to defend peace and security for others. After serving, military veterans face a challenging transition into civilian life and workplaces. In this review, we describe the importance of understanding the extreme context of veterans’ transitions and then integrate multidisciplinary research on veterans to identify the conditions under which the transition is successful (or not). Specifically, our review identifies how and under what conditions the knowledge, skills, and abilities of veterans translate to the civilian workforce, the employment outcomes (successes or failures) seen during the transition to the civilian workforce, and how employment opportunities increase the wellness of veterans. Throughout the review, we illustrate how incorporating the experiences of veterans can advance management theory on social identity, stigma, unemployment, intersectionality, and careers. In parallel, we highlight how management theory can help contextualize and enrich the study of veterans. We also distill insights from research into tools and practices that can improve civilian employment outcomes for veterans. Finally, we discuss an agenda for management research that enhances the experience of veterans and management theory by complicating the process of stigmatization and its resolution, positively reframing social identity, learning from veteran employment programs, exploring intersectional identities of veterans, and including veterans in the study of careers.