By the Numbers - July 6, 2015
42.2%
The percentage of sailors who described their morale as “marginal” or “poor," in the 2014 U.S. Navy Retention Study, according to a recent article in the journal World Affairs -- In the Ranks: Making Sense of Military Morale.
The article points out that poor morale is not just a problem for the Navy. It cites a finding from a 2011 Center for Army Leadership survey in which just 26% of those on active duty agreed with the statement, "The Army is headed in the right direction to prepare for the challenges of the next 10 years." It also mentions a 2014 service-wide Military Times survey which "found a 35 percent drop since 2009 in those servicemen rating their quality of life as 'good' or 'excellent.'”
The military morale problem is complex, the article points out, and needs to be viewed within a context that takes into consideration military involvement in various stages of the crises in Iraq and Afghanistan. Also, from a historical perspective, the article notes that, morale-wise, the military is in better shape than it was during the Vietnam era.
Between 1969 and 1971, there were 800 recorded “fragging” incidents (when soldiers attacked their own with grenades and other weapons), killing some 45 noncommissioned officers and officers. The Army’s desertion rate skyrocketed from 14.9 incidents per thousand in 1966 to 73.9 in 1971. Drug use became rampant—with one academic study finding, “Almost half of the ‘general’ sample [of enlisted soldiers] tried heroin or opium while in Vietnam and one-fifth developed physical or psychological dependence.” None of these problems exist in any comparable degree in today’s military.
Although poor military morale has generated widespread concern, notably among some elected officials, the article says it has been difficult to determine a cause and develop recommendations for improvement.
A number of possibilities—the inconclusive wars just fought, budgets cuts, and military benefit reductions—jump to mind as the causes of discontent, but these are based on conjecture more than fact. Moreover, closer analysis reveals both good and bad news for the military: On the one hand, the morale problem may not be as significant as the numbers depict; but to the degree that there is a problem, it is likely to be harder to solve than is commonly believed.
See also: Iraq, Afghanistan, and the U.S. military’s morale “crisis” (Brookings Institution)
42.2%
The percentage of sailors who described their morale as “marginal” or “poor," in the 2014 U.S. Navy Retention Study, according to a recent article in the journal World Affairs -- In the Ranks: Making Sense of Military Morale.
The article points out that poor morale is not just a problem for the Navy. It cites a finding from a 2011 Center for Army Leadership survey in which just 26% of those on active duty agreed with the statement, "The Army is headed in the right direction to prepare for the challenges of the next 10 years." It also mentions a 2014 service-wide Military Times survey which "found a 35 percent drop since 2009 in those servicemen rating their quality of life as 'good' or 'excellent.'”
The military morale problem is complex, the article points out, and needs to be viewed within a context that takes into consideration military involvement in various stages of the crises in Iraq and Afghanistan. Also, from a historical perspective, the article notes that, morale-wise, the military is in better shape than it was during the Vietnam era.
Between 1969 and 1971, there were 800 recorded “fragging” incidents (when soldiers attacked their own with grenades and other weapons), killing some 45 noncommissioned officers and officers. The Army’s desertion rate skyrocketed from 14.9 incidents per thousand in 1966 to 73.9 in 1971. Drug use became rampant—with one academic study finding, “Almost half of the ‘general’ sample [of enlisted soldiers] tried heroin or opium while in Vietnam and one-fifth developed physical or psychological dependence.” None of these problems exist in any comparable degree in today’s military.
Although poor military morale has generated widespread concern, notably among some elected officials, the article says it has been difficult to determine a cause and develop recommendations for improvement.
A number of possibilities—the inconclusive wars just fought, budgets cuts, and military benefit reductions—jump to mind as the causes of discontent, but these are based on conjecture more than fact. Moreover, closer analysis reveals both good and bad news for the military: On the one hand, the morale problem may not be as significant as the numbers depict; but to the degree that there is a problem, it is likely to be harder to solve than is commonly believed.
See also: Iraq, Afghanistan, and the U.S. military’s morale “crisis” (Brookings Institution)