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http://www.thestar.com/printArticle/215706
Increasing number of those interested in joining Canadian Forces show `socio-dysfunctional' profile, report warns
May 19, 2007
Allan Woods
Ottawa Bureau
OTTAWA–An increasing number of would-be recruits to the Canadian military are prone to displaying traits of social disobedience, intolerance toward ethnic groups and being fatalistic, a new report says.
The report cautions that such recruits could put the Canadian Forces' positive public image at serious risk.
The analysis, delivered to the Department of National Defence in March, warns of the "increasingly socio-dysfunctional profile of military aspirants." It goes on to suggest the military's reputation could be "easily shattered by the actions of a few or even just one Canadian Abu Ghraib" – a reference to the abuse of Iraqi detainees by U.S. military.
The report raises the spectre of the Canadian military scandal in Somalia, in which the Canadian Forces covered up the 1993 murder of a young Somali prisoner for several weeks. The incident led to criminal charges, a public inquiry and a decade of soul-searching for the military.
A profile drawn up in the study shows that today's average potential military recruit is "proud and intense," a "crude hedonist" and drawn to transgressive behaviour – or breaking the rules. Potential recruits are also driven by the need for social status and "to belong," and feel a lack of confidence in the future.
Male candidates are "macho," while women have "a strong masculine side."
The potential recruits tend to show an affinity for social Darwinism, characterized by the view that only the strongest members of society will survive. Violence and sex are also prominent interests associated with potential soldiers, according to the study, by Montreal-based polling firm CROP Inc.
This contrasts, the study says, with those already enrolled in the army, who have upstanding qualities, including a commitment to duty and ethical concerns. They also seek enriching experiences and have a capacity to deal with uncertainty.
But negative traits, like ethnic intolerance and fatalism, are also present in some current military personnel and the report warns specifically about the need to maintain exacting recruiting requirements to weed out those who could cause trouble on the battlefield.
"The Canadian Forces' involvement in Afghanistan carries the risk of increasing internal pressure for the need to secure new recruits," says the report. "Given the increasingly socio-dysfunctional profile of military aspirants, the exacting recruiting requirements and rigorous in-house training must not be relaxed."
In the wake of the Somalia mission, the military bolstered its recruiting process to screen out social misfits, such as those soldiers in the now-disbanded Canadian Airborne Regiment who were implicated in the murder of the young Somali.
Since 2006, the Conservative government has promised major increases to the ranks of the regular forces and the reserves, and DND officials have been easily meeting their recruiting targets thanks to the high-profile mission in Afghanistan.
The DND report was produced for the federal government before the controversy over allegations that Afghan police had abused dozens of Afghans who had been detained by Canadian soldiers and then handed over to local authorities. Canadian authorities are also probing suggestions that some Afghan detainees have been roughed up in Canadian custody.
Col. Steve Noonan, who was the commander of the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan from August 2005 to March 2006, warned of the risk of abuse by Canadian soldiers if they were to have greater responsibility for Afghan detainees.
"Without experience in it, the execution of that may go wrong as has been evidenced in my understanding of ... the Abu Ghraib situation," he said in a sworn affidavit this month for a court case.
The new report says the standing of the Canadian Forces has clearly risen since the Somalia scandal, thanks to a general alignment between military values and Canadian values.
It found that Canadians are becoming more deferential to authority and more receptive to the need for strong homeland security, law and order and national pride.
"Combined with the communication strategy geared toward fighting the threats of today's world, all ingredients seem to be there to boost Canadians' benevolence toward the Forces."
Increasing number of those interested in joining Canadian Forces show `socio-dysfunctional' profile, report warns
May 19, 2007
Allan Woods
Ottawa Bureau
OTTAWA–An increasing number of would-be recruits to the Canadian military are prone to displaying traits of social disobedience, intolerance toward ethnic groups and being fatalistic, a new report says.
The report cautions that such recruits could put the Canadian Forces' positive public image at serious risk.
The analysis, delivered to the Department of National Defence in March, warns of the "increasingly socio-dysfunctional profile of military aspirants." It goes on to suggest the military's reputation could be "easily shattered by the actions of a few or even just one Canadian Abu Ghraib" – a reference to the abuse of Iraqi detainees by U.S. military.
The report raises the spectre of the Canadian military scandal in Somalia, in which the Canadian Forces covered up the 1993 murder of a young Somali prisoner for several weeks. The incident led to criminal charges, a public inquiry and a decade of soul-searching for the military.
A profile drawn up in the study shows that today's average potential military recruit is "proud and intense," a "crude hedonist" and drawn to transgressive behaviour – or breaking the rules. Potential recruits are also driven by the need for social status and "to belong," and feel a lack of confidence in the future.
Male candidates are "macho," while women have "a strong masculine side."
The potential recruits tend to show an affinity for social Darwinism, characterized by the view that only the strongest members of society will survive. Violence and sex are also prominent interests associated with potential soldiers, according to the study, by Montreal-based polling firm CROP Inc.
This contrasts, the study says, with those already enrolled in the army, who have upstanding qualities, including a commitment to duty and ethical concerns. They also seek enriching experiences and have a capacity to deal with uncertainty.
But negative traits, like ethnic intolerance and fatalism, are also present in some current military personnel and the report warns specifically about the need to maintain exacting recruiting requirements to weed out those who could cause trouble on the battlefield.
"The Canadian Forces' involvement in Afghanistan carries the risk of increasing internal pressure for the need to secure new recruits," says the report. "Given the increasingly socio-dysfunctional profile of military aspirants, the exacting recruiting requirements and rigorous in-house training must not be relaxed."
In the wake of the Somalia mission, the military bolstered its recruiting process to screen out social misfits, such as those soldiers in the now-disbanded Canadian Airborne Regiment who were implicated in the murder of the young Somali.
Since 2006, the Conservative government has promised major increases to the ranks of the regular forces and the reserves, and DND officials have been easily meeting their recruiting targets thanks to the high-profile mission in Afghanistan.
The DND report was produced for the federal government before the controversy over allegations that Afghan police had abused dozens of Afghans who had been detained by Canadian soldiers and then handed over to local authorities. Canadian authorities are also probing suggestions that some Afghan detainees have been roughed up in Canadian custody.
Col. Steve Noonan, who was the commander of the Canadian Forces in Afghanistan from August 2005 to March 2006, warned of the risk of abuse by Canadian soldiers if they were to have greater responsibility for Afghan detainees.
"Without experience in it, the execution of that may go wrong as has been evidenced in my understanding of ... the Abu Ghraib situation," he said in a sworn affidavit this month for a court case.
The new report says the standing of the Canadian Forces has clearly risen since the Somalia scandal, thanks to a general alignment between military values and Canadian values.
It found that Canadians are becoming more deferential to authority and more receptive to the need for strong homeland security, law and order and national pride.
"Combined with the communication strategy geared toward fighting the threats of today's world, all ingredients seem to be there to boost Canadians' benevolence toward the Forces."
