The Soldier’s Contract: The Institutional Development of U.S. Civil-Military Relations
Date of Award
2014
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Name
Bachelors
Department
Social Sciences
First Advisor
Fitzgerald, Keith
Keywords
United States, Civil-Military Relations, National Security
Area of Concentration
Political Science
Abstract
As the drawdown of United States forces in Afghanistan finishes, the United States will go through the process of reassessing what role the military should play in national security. This study explores civil-military relations institutionally, observing how key civilian and military actors have developed. This project takes a historical-institutional approach to the development of the institutions that compose the civil-military relationship, looking for patterns of development. This project concludes that the civil-military relations change during and after war or a perceived threat to national security, resulting in the introduction of new civil-military actors or the redefinition of an already existing actor’s role. The study reveals how military institutions develop and form policy in response to a previous security threat, resulting in unintended consequences.
Recommended Citation
Sapp, Blair A., "The Soldier’s Contract: The Institutional Development of U.S. Civil-Military Relations" (2014). Theses & ETDs. 4935.
https://digitalcommons.ncf.edu/theses_etds/4935