A survey targeting interpersonal, cultural, language, and advisory activities was administered to 565 Army and Marine advisors returning from Iraq and Afghanistan. Advisors rated how frequently they engaged in 151 activities, as well as indicated how important those activities were to advisor performance. Results indicated that the most frequent activity engaged in by advisors was communicating through an interpreter, followed by role modeling behaviors and behaviors demonstrating consideration and respect. Results suggest that advisors did not view language proficiency as necessary to perform their job, but that knowledge of common words and greetings in the host nation language is important. Results also highlight the importance of impression management skills, skill at interpreting nonverbal behavior, mentoring and coaching skills, the ability to compare one's culture with the counterpart's culture, the ability to detect manipulation, rapport building, and interacting with coalition forces.

Overview. The post-deployment survey -- Organization of the remainder of this report / Method. Sample and survey administration -- Measures embedded in the post-deployment survey -- Additional measures / Results: overall sample of advisors. Frequency of interactions with individuals found in the operating environment -- Frequency ratings of advisor activities -- Importance ratings of advisor activities -- F-I composite scores of advisor activities -- Linguistic, interpersonal, cultural and advisory domains of the advisor role / Results: the advisor's experience in Afghanistan versus Iraq. KSAs: frequency ratings -- KSAs: importance ratings -- KSAs: F-I composite ratings / Discussion. Linguistic and communication capabilities -- Influence -- Building relationships and cultural understandings -- Advisory behaviors -- Conclusion / Appendix A: post-deployment survey -- Appendix B: KSA scales embedded in the advisor survey -- Appendix C: advisor activities ordered from most frequently demonstrated to least frequently demonstrated -- Appendix D: perceived importance of advisor activities ordered from most to least important -- Appendix E: advisor activities arranged by descending order of F-I composite scores -- Appendix F: frequency, importance, and F-I composite ratings by team types -- Appendix G: frequency, importance, and F-I composite ratings by military service -- Appendix H: frequency, importance and F-I composite ratings by country of advisor deployment.