The HERO Framework: Building Stronger Volunteer Fire Departments with Psychological Capital

June 2, 2026

By Dennis P. Stolle, JD, PhD, and Marnie Shanbhag, PhD

Volunteer fire departments across the country are asking a hard question: how do we sustain our people over time — without asking them to give more than they reasonably can?

This is not a new concern. Recruitment and retention are two of the most significant challenges facing volunteer fire and emergency services and the U.S. Fire Administration has published national guidance to help departments address them.

The demands on the volunteer fire service continue to grow. Call volumes are increasing. Training expectations are rising. Administrative responsibilities are expanding. At the same time, departments face persistent challenges with staffing, retention, and leadership continuity. Many volunteers balance service with full-time jobs, family responsibilities, and community commitments. Over time, this combination wears down even the most dedicated people, without giving them time or space to recover.

Most departments know they should focus on physical readiness, training, and equipment or fundraising to build financial resources. But there is another, often-overlooked resource that plays a critical role in whether people stay engaged, effective, and willing to continue serving their communities.

That resource is psychological capital, a human capacity that shapes how people show up under strain and adversity – and it’s one that volunteer fire departments can build with small, intentional changes.

Learning from Psychology

We are not firefighters, nor do we claim firsthand experience of the job or the culture. But our work has focused on how small teams function under pressure, how leaders shape performance and sustainability, and how organizations support people doing demanding, high-stakes work. That work has taken place alongside professions that share many of the same realities as the volunteer fire service: high-stakes responsibility without pause, service under uncertainty, and the expectation to perform when it matters most.

Although psychologists care deeply about people’s mental health, what follows is not clinical guidance. It is a leadership framework based on psychological research that helps explain why some departments are better able to sustain their people over time, even when conditions are hard.

What Psychological Capital Is—and What It Is Not

Psychological capital refers to a set of strengths that support performance, persistence, and wellbeing under demanding conditions:

• Hope
• Efficacy
• Resilience
• Optimism

Often referred to by the acronym HERO, these psychological resources are interrelated and mutually reinforcing. Together, they function much like other forms of capital: creating greater capacity than any single resource on its own. Much like a bank account, they can be built, invested in, depleted, and replenished – and they matter most when conditions are difficult.

Psychological capital exists for both individuals and departments. Firefighters bring these resources with them, and departments shape whether those resources are reinforced, shared, and sustained over time.

Just as important is what psychological capital is not. It cannot diagnose or treat mental health conditions. Rather, psychological capital is meant to help everyone develop core, everyday psychological resources that support performance, engagement, and sustainability in demanding roles.

Why Psychological Capital Matters in the Volunteer Fire Service

In the volunteer fire service, the strain of increasing demands and competing life priorities often shows up gradually – in missed trainings, declining engagement, fewer volunteers stepping into leadership roles, or experienced members quietly stepping back. This pattern is widely recognized in national retention research and recruitment guidance for volunteer departments.

When psychological reserves for coping and adaptation are low, even small challenges feel heavier. When those psychological reserves are strong, departments are better able to absorb setbacks, adapt to change, and maintain psychological and physical readiness without exhausting their people – continuing to operate safely and effectively when it counts. In high-risk environments, psychological readiness is inseparable from operational safety.

Research across high-risk, service-oriented professions consistently points to the same pattern: when individuals and teams have stronger psychological resources, they cope better with stress, stay engaged longer, and perform more effectively. In volunteer settings – where time, energy, and staffing are already limited – those resources become especially valuable.

At its core, psychological capital is about strengthening the internal resources people rely on to do hard work well – and to sustain that effort over time. Ultimately building up these resources helps people and organizations stay physically and mentally healthy.

HEROs: The Four Components of Psychological Capital for Firefighter Leaders

Hope: Seeing a Path Forward
Hope is not wishful thinking. In practical terms, it means being able to see a path forward, even when circumstances are challenging. Hope is an intentional act similar to the way a firefighter might approach a fire, seeing a clear way through what might appear impenetrable to others.

In volunteer departments, hope is built when leaders share clear goals, explain how the department plans to meet them, and acknowledge obstacles honestly. It also includes the ability to adjust when plans change. Members are more likely to stay engaged when they can see where the department is headed and believe there is a workable way to get there.

Efficacy: Confidence Built Through Competence
Efficacy is confidence grounded in skill and preparation. It is the belief that, with effort and training, challenges can be handled. And it grows from both one’s own experiences of working through difficulty and from seeing colleagues do the same.

In volunteer departments, efficacy is built through consistent training, clear expectations, opportunities to practice under realistic conditions, and the cumulative experience of having worked through difficult situations before. High efficacy supports safety, sound decision-making, and willingness to step up when leadership is needed.

Resilience: Bouncing Back and Continuing Forward
Resilience is often misunderstood as toughness. In reality, it is the ability to recover, adapt, and continue after challenges. Often, it takes time and effort. Resilience is supported by culture, leadership behavior, and peer support, not individual grit.

Resilient departments do not ignore strain or push it underground. Leaders recognize that challenging calls, operational setbacks, and periods of high demand take a toll – and that “bouncing back” does not happen instantly. Giving individuals and departments time to return to baseline, and sometimes come back stronger, is necessary to remain effective.

Optimism: Realistic Confidence About the Future
Optimism does not mean assuming things will be easy. It means believing challenges can be handled and that effort is worthwhile.

In volunteer departments, optimism shows up in how leaders frame difficulties. Setbacks are treated as temporary and solvable rather than permanent failures. Progress is acknowledged, even when conditions are far from perfect. In practice, optimism reflects a realistic belief that challenges can be met, one way or another, through skill, effort, and persistence – even when the path forward is difficult.

What Leaders Can Do

Psychological capital does not develop by accident – leaders must play an active role in shaping it. The good news is that building psychological capital does not require formal programs or significant investment of resources, though formal programs can help. Even small, intentional practices can make a meaningful difference, such as:

• Make goals and expectations visible.
• Use training to build confidence, not just compliance.
• Recognize effort, preparation, and growth – not only outcomes.
• Normalize recovery after demanding periods as part of readiness.
• Involve members in problem-solving and decision-making.

How leaders talk about challenges, respond to mistakes, recognize effort, and set priorities influences the people around them. Leaders do not need to be perfect or charismatic. Intention, consistency and visible commitment matter more than style. Over time, these practices shape department culture.

Strengthening What Makes Volunteer Service Possible

Volunteer fire departments offer a vital service to their communities under difficult, unpredictable, and high-stakes conditions. They succeed because people are willing to show up, train hard, and often place community needs ahead of their own.

Psychological capital helps explain how that commitment is sustained – and why it sometimes erodes. By paying attention to the psychological resources that support their volunteers’ performance and persistence, leaders can strengthen their departments from the inside out.

The viewpoints expressed in this article are the authors’ own and do not represent an endorsement from or the policy or viewpoints of the American Psychological Association for whom they work.

Dennis P. Stolle, JD, PhD, is head of applied psychology at the American Psychological Association. He is a social and personality psychologist and attorney whose work focuses on small-group behavior and decision making, leadership, and organizational functioning under pressure. He has spent more than two decades applying psychological science to high-stakes team environments, with an emphasis on performance, sustainability, decision accuracy, and the psychological resources that help small groups function effectively over time.

Marnie Shanbhag, PhD, is senior director for the Office of Independent Practice at the American Psychological Association. She is a Florida-licensed psychologist whose work spans clinical and applied settings, including adult psychotherapy, executive coaching, and organizational consulting. She brings extensive experience in independent practice with a focus on resilience and wellbeing, and has also served as executive director of a nonprofit agency coordinating maternal and child health systems.