Characteristics of will as predictors of risk inclination of military university students in the process of professional military socialization

One of the important and relevant problems of social psychology is the study of the role of will characteristics as important regulators of risk behavior. It is especially interesting to investigate it in such a specific social group as military personnel, whose activities are associated with risk both directly and indirectly. In view of this, the purpose of the research presented in the article is to study changes in volitional determination of risk and rational behavior of the military university students in the process of professional military socialization. As a hypothesis, we suggest that different volitional characteristics mainly determine risk behavior and behavior associated with rationality. The research involves 182 military students (aged M = 20.5; SD = 1.6) of Saratov Military Institute of the National Guard of the Russian Federation. We used the following techniques to analyze changes in volitional determination of rational and risk behavior: the technique for diagnosing the manifestation of volitional personality traits “Volitional personality traits” (M. V. Chumakov); “Risk-taking” questionnaire (A. M. Schubert); the technique for diagnosing two personality traits – readiness for risk and rationality – as psychological variables reflecting the characteristics of personal regulation of the subject’s choices (such as decision-making) in the broad context of life situations “Personality factors of decision making” (T. V. Kornilova). We revealed the complication of the volitional determination of rational and risk behavior in the process of professional military socialization; we also found major volitional personality traits, that are predictors of readiness for risk and rationality. It is shown that 8% of variations in rational behavior are due to purposefulness and initiative, and 8% of variations in risk behavior are due to persistence. The study of the identified parameters can help in determining the inclination to risk and rationality of military personnel, their influence on behavior in the course of performing service and combat missions and, consequently, on their more effective and high-quality performance.

Dynamics of indicators of interpersonal relationships of courses of a military university at different stages of military and professional socialization

The article deals with the actual problem of interpersonal relations among military personnel. The urgency of studying this problem is determined by the high importance of this special social group, which performs the function of protecting society and the state. The purpose of the paper is to study the dynamics of indicators of various characteristics (styles) of interpersonal relations among cadets of a military higher educational institution in the process of military-professional socialization in the context of studying the specifics of interpersonal relations among military personnel. As a hypothesis, it is suggested that the specifics of military service presupposes cadets’ preference for certain styles of interpersonal relations at all stages of military socialization. The study involved 182 male cadets of Saratov Military Order of Zhukov Red Banner Institute of National Guard Troops, aged 18 to 26 years, M = 20.5 years. Sample size: 1st academic year – n = 38; 2nd year – n = 48; 3rd year – n = 28; 4th year – n = 32; 5th year – n = 36. To determine the individual style of interpersonal relations, the methodology “Diagnostics of interpersonal relations” by T. Leary (modified by L. N. Sobchik) was used. In the course of empirical research, it was found that the characteristics of interpersonal relations in the process of military socialization are developing quite actively. There is a constant positive dynamics of the styles of interpersonal relations aimed at cooperation, mutual assistance, and acceptance of responsibility. Based on a comparative analysis, it was revealed that the most preferred styles of interpersonal relations are authoritarian, selfish, friendly and altruistic styles.

Military socialization, disciplinary culture, and sexual violence in UN peacekeeping operations

The sexual exploitation and abuse (SEA) of civilians by international peacekeepers is a form of post-conflict violence that is pernicious and understudied, but far from inevitable. However, there are very few cross-mission analyses of the phenomenon. This article considers whether the socialization experiences of troops in two environments, the contributing state military and the peacekeeping mission itself, help to explain the observed variation in SEA. Drawing on a dataset of SEA allegations between 2007 and 2014, as well as the first publicly available data from the United Nations that identify the nationalities of alleged perpetrators, this article analyzes the layered nature of socialization through the lens of SEA. Specifically, this article presents evidence that SEA is positively associated with disciplinary breakdowns at the peacekeeping mission’s lower levels of command, and argues that a peacekeeping mission may carry its own norms and socializing processes that either constrain or facilitate the emergence and endurance of SEA.

The limits of socialization and the underproduction of military violence

Research on socialization can obscure the agency of its targets, presenting socialization as a uni-directional process shaping beliefs and behaviors. This assumption is even stronger for the military, a totalizing institution often portrayed as fashioning its members into violence professionals through a top-down process of domination. In contrast, this article argues that even powerful socialization processes are not omnipotent, and that individuals retain a measure of agency even under pervasive social control. Drawing on the case of the Israel Defense Force during the Second Intifada, it shows that norms inculcated during military socialization can be undermined by the more ambiguous conditions of deployment. When soldiers also subscribe to competing norms and receive social support for their dissent, resistance can emerge, increase, and become more overt. Analysis of resistance to violence underscores the power of military socialization while drawing attention to its limits. It therefore challenges homogenizing views of soldiers, illuminating the processes through which military violence is produced and curbed.