Dr. Susan Steen

Published May 20, 2025

Co-Editor for Warrior Heart

Dr. Susan Steen is the Associate Professor of Cross-Cultural Communication at the Air Force Culture and Language Center (AFCLC) at Air University, Maxwell Air Force Base, Alabama. She earned her PhD in Communication from The University of Southern Mississippi in 2007 and held a variety of positions in higher education prior to joining AFCLC in 2015. Dr. Steen’s scholarship involves intercultural, interpersonal, and organizational communication. She has traveled widely throughout Europe, the Middle East, Central America, and Asia presenting on topics related to international education and intercultural competence and has published her work in a variety of media.

At Air University Dr. Steen teaches students at all levels and ranks, from enlisted to general officer. Since 2021 she has led Air University’s Resilience Research Task Force (RTF, now known as Warfighter Advantage Research teams) involving faculty and students from Air War College and Air Command and Staff College. The group draws on evidence-based scholarship and participants’ grounded professional experience to identify and develop practical solutions to resilience challenges facing the USAF and DOD. Dr. Steen is the lead editor of the AU Press edited volume Warrior Heart: The Foundation of Combat Readiness (September 2024) featuring the work of Resilience RTF scholars, with a foreword by General (Ret.) Michael Minihan.

Warrior Heart: The Foundation of Combat Readiness

Generational Differences. Combat trauma. Coaching. Teamwork and belonging. The pillars of Comprehensive Airman Fitness. How do these affect resilience, readiness, leadership, and performance—both personal and organizational?

The US Air Force is at the cutting edge of inquiry into these factors. Air University’s Resilience Research Task Force delves into existing research on resilience—as a mindset, a skill set, and a force multiplier.

The various topics addressed in this work were identified by students, faculty, partners, and constituents, including Air Mobility Command and the Air Force Office of Integrated Resilience. This volume offers commanders, leaders, and Airmen a deeper understanding of human behavior and provides insights into cultivating Airmen and teams that grow stronger together through chaos, disruptive change, combat, or catastrophe.

[Susan Steen, PhD; Angelle Khachadoorian, PhD; Mary Bartlett, PhD / 2024 / 194 pages / ISBN 978-1-58566-331-6 / AU Press Code: B-184 / Format: Print & Electronic]