United States Army family life chaplain training: A modified Delphi study establishing training goals and comparing chaplain trainee feedback

This study uses a modification of the Delphi method to survey expert family life chaplain trainers to establish the most important skills in which family life chaplains should be trained. The top 33 skills in the categories of enrichment, prevention and intervention are specified. Utilizing these 99 skills as outcome training goals, family life chaplain trainees were given an opportunity to rate the skill acquisition the institution they attended offered.;Overall ratings found little difference in the chaplain trainees' perceptions of their training. The results note that trainees find themselves better trained in intervention skills than prevention or enrichment skills. The trifold balance that the Army doctrine seeks among these skills may not yet be achieved. The study specifies the perceived strengths and weaknesses in skills acquisition from six institutional groups from which family life chaplains graduate.