The Postmodern Military: Armed Forces After the Cold War - Softcover

Softcover

ISBN 10: 0195133293 ISBN 13: 9780195133295

Publisher: Oxford University Press, 2000

Synopsis

The end of the Cold War augurs momentous changes within armed forces in Western societies. Clarification of these changes is the purpose of The Postmodern Military. The armed forces of the United States and those of other Western developed democracies are moving toward a postmodern format. The modern military that fully emerged in the nineteenth century was associated with the rise of the nation-state, war oriented in mission, a conscripted mass army, masculine in makeup and ethos, and sharply differentiated in structure and culture from civilian society. The postmodern military, by contrast, undergoes a loosening of the ties with the nation-state, becomes multipurpose in mission, moves toward a smaller volunteer force, is increasingly androgynous in makeup and ethos, and has greater permeability with civilian society.
The Postmodern Military assesses contemporary civil-military trends by first looking at specific areas in the U.S. military. Then, an international team of leading military sociologists assesses the postmodern thesis in twelve countries (Australia, Canada, Denmark, France, Germany, Israel, Italy, the Netherlands, New Zealand, South Africa, Switzerland, the UK).
This book provides the student and defense professional with a foundation on which to base organizational and personal policies. It also has much to tell the general reader about what life is really like in today's military and how it is both the same and different around the world.

About this title

Review

'Given the challenges and uncertainties of the post-Cold war era, this book contributes much-needed insight into the transformation of the military.' Journal of Peace Research

'Well grounded in theory, with a wealth of empirical material, and in contrast to many other anthologies logically organized; a shining example of the capacity of military-sociological research to yield valuable insights.'Neue Politische Literatur

About the Author

Charles C. Moskos is Professor in the Department of Sociology at Northwestern University. John Allen Williams is Associate Professor in the Department of Political Science at Loyola University Chicago. David R. Segal is Director of the Center for Research on Military Organization and Professor in the Department of Sociology and the Department of Government and Politics at the University of Maryland.

About this edition

• Publisher: Oxford University Press
• Publication date: 2000
• ISBN 10: 0195133293
• ISBN 13: 9780195133295
• Binding: Paperback
• Edition number: 1
• Number of pages: 312
• Editor: Moskos Charles C.