The Convergence of Military and Civilian Occupational Structures Evidence from Studies of Military Retired Employment

Biderman, Albert D.; Sharp, Laure M.

doi:10.1086/224501

Cited by 28 publications

(7 citation statements)

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“…Cadets who perform well at the academy have better chances of gaining access to higher education facilities, where they acquire management and leadership skills necessary to ascend to the upper echelons. Without such training, officials are likely to be stuck at midlevel ranks and lack the skills for lucrative employment outside the security apparatus (Biderman and Sharp , 388)…”

Section: A Theory Of Careers Within Coercive Institutionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why Underachievers Dominate Secret Police Organizations: Evidence from Autocratic Argentina

Scharpf

Gläßel

2019

American J Political Sci

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Autocrats depend on a capable secret police. Anecdotal evidence, however, often characterizes agents as surprisingly mediocre in skill and intellect. To explain this puzzle, this article focuses on the career incentives underachieving individuals face in the regular security apparatus. Low-performing officials in hierarchical organizations have little chance of being promoted or filling lucrative positions. To salvage their careers, these officials are willing to undertake burdensome secret police work. Using data on all 4,287 officers who served in autocratic Argentina (1975-83), we study biographic differences between secret police agents and the entire recruitment pool. We find that low-achieving officers were stuck within the regime hierarchy, threatened with discharge, and thus more likely to join the secret police for future benefits. The study demonstrates how state bureaucracies breed mundane career concerns that produce willing enforcers and cement violent regimes. This has implications for the understanding of autocratic consolidation and democratic breakdown. Replication Materials: The data and materials required to verify the computational reproducibility of the results, procedures and analyses in this article are available on the American Journal of Political Science Dataverse within the Harvard Dataverse Network, at: https://doi.org/10.7910/DVN/PGFOXW. "We don't want clever people. We want mediocrities."-Officer, Greek Military Police 1 A utocracies are notorious for their systematic violation of civil liberties and human rights (e.g., Davenport 2007; Frantz and Kendall-Taylor 2014; Valentino 2004). At the core of autocratic repression stand secret police forces (Arendt 2017; Friedrich and Brzezinski 1965). For centuries, regimes have made extensive use of and largely depended on the loyalty of such organizations (Baldwin 1934; Greitens 2016; Plate and Darvi 1982). Charged with the responsibility to protect the regime from internal and external threats, secret

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Section: A Theory Of Careers Within Coercive Institutionsmentioning

confidence: 99%

Why Underachievers Dominate Secret Police Organizations: Evidence from Autocratic Argentina

Scharpf

Gläßel

2019

American J Political Sci

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“…Much of this trend can be attributed to the post–Cold War policy of “dual use” technology, that is, the attempt to develop technologies that can be used in both the military and the civilian sectors (Etzkowitz 1996). Another important driving force behind the “civilianizing” of military occupations is the “second‐career” transition for military personnel (Biderman and Sharp 1968). Furthermore, the military increasingly highlights the transferability of skills from the military to society to show that skills learned in the army are usable in the civilian labor market and that public budgets are therefore not being wasted (Dandeker 1994, 646).…”

Section: Characterizing the Market Armymentioning

confidence: 99%

The Essence of the “Market Army”

Levy

2010

Public Administration Review

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Western armies have undergone substantial organizational‐cultural transformations since the end of the Cold War. Two main themes have been suggested to describe these transformations: postmodernity and post‐Fordism. This article analyzes these profound shifts. The author portrays the new Western army as a “market army,” distancing itself from the “citizen army,” and envisions a continuum between these extreme types. The market army emulates market practices in order to adapt to modern strategic, economic, political, and cultural constraints. What typifies the market army is the subjection of military doctrine to the market, a post‐Fordist structure, a network‐centric hierarchy, market values borrowed by the military profession, the convergence of military and civilian occupations, the commodification of military service, and new contractual forms of bargaining between soldiers and the military. Israel serves as a critical case with which to develop the theory of the market army.

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“…The comparability and transferability of the contents of functional skills and competencies is strictly defined by the comparability of the contents of functions of related work processes, as well as the context in which functional competencies are exercised. For example, Biderman and Sharp (1968) in their study on convergence of military and civil work and implications for the employment of military veterans in the USA claimed that competence-based career choices of retired military officers in civilian labour markets are oriented to managerial positions and jobs requiring administrative and quasi-administrative experience. Etzioni (1961) distinguished two types of positions of soldiers and officers in military service – combat positions and special expertise positions, as well as two positions of focus in the search for jobs in the civilian labour market – external positions (focussing on general administration jobs) and instrumental positions (focussing on specific jobs requiring expertise).…”

Section: Literature Reviewmentioning

confidence: 99%

Integrating retired military officers into the civilian labour market

Tūtlys

Winterton

Liesionienė

2018

EJTD

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Purpose This paper aims to investigate issues affecting the integration of retired military officers into civilian work using a competence model as an analytical framework. Design/methodology/approach The paper combines literature review with empirical study. The primary method of data collection was a series of in-depth, face-to-face interviews with 25 retired army officers in Lithuania. Findings Despite evidence that a career as an officer in the military develops valuable competencies that have obvious potential in the civilian labour market, the integration of retired army officers into the civilian labour market is fraught with difficulties. Apart from the obvious inappropriateness of specific competencies associated with armed combat for civilian occupations, even competencies acquired in military service that align closely with those required in civilian jobs do not necessarily translate because of different contexts and different value systems. Research limitations/implications The empirical basis is limited to army officers in Lithuania, and the authors urge caution in extrapolating to other military personnel and other countries. To the extent that the approach has generic value, there are clearly implications for demobilisation after major conflicts or return to civilian life of personnel involved in international peace-keeping. Practical implications This exploratory research suggests that a competence framework can identify limits and possibilities of aligning competencies acquired in military service with those required in civilian occupations, provided context and values are incorporated as part of the analysis. The approach piloted in this paper could be useful more widely for facilitating mobility between sectors and occupations arising from the adoption of disruptive technologies. Originality/value The paper demonstrates the value of a structured approach to comparing competencies in context and the mediating role of values in moving from military to civilian occupations.

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The Convergence of Military and Civilian Occupational Structures Evidence from Studies of Military Retired Employment

Cited by 28 publications

References 0 publications

Why Underachievers Dominate Secret Police Organizations: Evidence from Autocratic Argentina

Why Underachievers Dominate Secret Police Organizations: Evidence from Autocratic Argentina

The Essence of the “Market Army”

Integrating retired military officers into the civilian labour market

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