Table 1
Superordinate and Subordinate Themes Derived from Cross-Case Analysis.
| SUPERORDINATE THEME | SUBTHEME | PARTICIPANTS | ILLUSTRATIVE EXCERPTS (ABRIDGED) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Exile from Elite Excellence | Identity Loss | P2, P6, P7 | “I still today feel like I’ll never have that experience back again” (P2).; “DEVGRU only hired the top 1% of the Navy” (P6). |
| Standards Gap | P5, P6, P7 | “The rest of the world isn’t like that place.” (P7); “We didn’t try to do the bare minimum because someone’s life was on the line.” (P5). | |
| Community Displacement | P2, P4 | “You’re on a speeding train … then you’re out there…by yourself trying to figure it out” (P4). | |
| From Mission Clarity to Civilian Ambiguity | Loss of Unified Purpose | P3 | “The civilian world is an amorphous blob…you have to create your own mission” (P3). |
| Competing Priorities & Diffuse Authority | P1, P2 | “We have SOPs, but they’re vague. I’m told I’ve done it wrong, but nothing says I’m wrong” (P1); “You’re advocating for patients…caught in the middle” (P2). | |
| Ambiguity Tolerance | P3 | “You have to accept that two things can be true at the same time” (P3). | |
| Leadership Competence Inversion and Reconstruction | Competence Inversion: Directness Misread | P2, P7 | “People get their feelings hurt a lot easier…I have to be more diplomatic” (P2); “I kind of ran it like a drill instructor at first” (P7). |
| Pace and Bias for Action | P6 | “It was clear early on it was better to ask forgiveness than permission” (P6). | |
| Collaborative Reconstruction | P2, P4, P5, P6 | “I work for you guys; tell me your issues and we’ll figure it out” (P4); “Most people just want to be heard instead of being told what to do” (P6). |
[i] Note. Pseudonyms are used to protect participant confidentiality. Quotations are abridged for clarity and formatted in accordance with APA 7 guidelines.