The Military And the Family As Greedy Institutions

TLDR

Military families sit at the intersection of two demanding institutions—military service and family—requiring high commitment, loyalty, time, and energy. The authors detail the demands on service members and families—risk of injury or death, geographic mobility, separations, foreign residence, and normative constraints—and analyze trends that increase military‑family conflict, such as women’s greater labor participation, more married junior enlisted, sole parents, active‑duty mothers, and dual‑service couples, while considering possible military adaptations. The paper finds that evolving societal and military family trends are intensifying conflict between the military and family institutions.

Abstract

This paper analyzes military families as the intersection of two societal institutions, both of which make great demands on individuals in terms of commitment, loyalty, time, and energy. It shows the increasing conflict between these two "greedy institutions' due to various trends in American society and military family patterns. The demands that American armed forces make on members and their families are described, including the risk of injury or death, geographic mobility, family separations, residence in foreign countries, and normative constraints on the behavior of spouses and children. Also discussed are trends that are increasing the potential military/family conflict, including general changes in women's roles in society (especially labor force participation) and specific changes in military family patterns, such as increases in the number of married junior enlisted personnel, sole parents, active duty mothers, and dual-service couples. Actual and potential military adaptations to these changes are considered, with particular attention to their implications for institutional and occupational trends in the military.