Suchergebnisse

This article explores contemporary understandings of military duty and dynamics of cohesion during deployment with a focus on host–citizen relations. Duty is treated as a perception-based dynamic construct shaped, in part, by operational experiences. Traditionally, Western military duty is defined by conventional obligations of loyalty to the military unit and mission in the context of combat operations, in these ways linked to military cohesion. However, in response to increasingly "population-oriented" military operations, I argue the need to broaden the study of military duty and cohesion beyond interpersonal bonds of the military organization to include the role of host–citizen relations. In-depth interviews with Swedish service members reaffirm the centrality of conventional duty to the mission and military unit, yet also indicate varying levels and forms of obligations to local actors. Overall, understandings of duty matter to cohesion both as a unifying force and source of tension within the mission.

AbstractContemporary "population-oriented" military intervention and the objectives of protecting, supporting, and fighting alongside host-nation authorities and populations pose new challenges to Western armed forces' traditionally combat-oriented understanding of duty. The article argues that military personnel who engage in unarmed and nonthreatening interaction—noncombat contact—with host citizens are more likely to develop a stronger sense of duty—perceived obligations—toward the host-nation population. Interviews with US Army officers with experiences from Afghanistan show that noncombat contact with Afghan citizens led to increased willingness to safeguard the interests and well-being of the Afghan population and adapt the mission accordingly.