Combating Sexual Assault With the Military Ethic

• Author: John Bennett
• Published date: 01 October 2018
• DOI: 10.1177/0095327X17735520
• Date: 01 October 2018
• Subject Matter: Articles

Article

Combating Sexual Assault

With the Military Ethic:

Exploring Culture,

Military Institutions, and

Norms-Based Preventive Policy

John Bennett

1

Abstract

This article explores sexual assault within the military by focusing on the role of

norms and institutional culture. This article asserts that poor impulse control is, in

part, at the root of sexual assault offenses. The “military ethic,” however, provides a

promising institutional means to stigmatize sexual assault and further acculturate

service members into law-abiding norms. The military ethic exalts obedience and

self-sacrifice. The military ethic is theorized as a norm that may challenge or alter the

attitudes and characteristics underlying sexual assault. Additionally, the question of

whether the military fosters an institutional “culture of rape” is analyzed. Research

into offenders’ motives is discussed, with a focus on the significance of self-control in

offending conduct. Research on the features of successful preventive programs is

considered. The article concludes by proposing a norms-based preventive policy

targeting offender attitudes and capitalizing on successful preventive programs.

Keywords

culture, military, self-control, sexual assault, prevention

1

U.S. Army Special Operations Command, Fayetteville, NC, USA

The analysis and opinions in this article are solely those of the author, and do not reflect the views of the

United States government, the Department of Defense, the United States Army, or any other official

body in connection with the author. This article was not written in fulfillment, to any degree, of any of

the author’s official duties.

Corresponding Author:

John Bennett, Fayetteville, NC, USA.

Email: jthomasbennett@gmail.com

Armed Forces & Society

2018, Vol. 44(4) 707-730

ªThe Author(s) 2017

Article reuse guidelines:

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DOI: 10.1177/0095327X17735520

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More than many other social institutions today, the military is able to influence its

members’ norms, thereby influencing their behavior. This institutional influence

impacts service members through what Huntington (1957) called the “military

ethic,” which “exalts obedience as the highest virtue of military men” and

“emphasizes the permanence of irrationality, weakness and evil in human affairs”

(p. 79). The military ethic thus instills a keen awareness of human vice, while

fostering specific norms. Chief among those norms is self-sacrifice. The Supreme

Court recognizes that “[t]he essence of military service is the subordination of the

desires and interests of the individual to the needs of the service” (Goldman v.

Weinberger, 1986). The following analysis suggests that self-sacrifice and the

related norm of self-control are vital components of law-abiding behavior. There-

fore, institutional strengthening of the military ethic could potentially reduce the

current rate of sexual assault in the military.

The norm of self-control should be central in any institutional effort to understand

and reduce sexual assault. Poor self-control is a characteristic of criminals (Moffitt

et al., 2011, p. 2693). As Baumeister, Vohs, and Tice (2007) observe, “[i]nadequate

self-control has been linked to” behavioral problems such as “crime and violence” as

well as “sexually impulsive behavior” (p. 351). Familial, social, and economic

institutions play a critical role in fostering self-control and law-abiding norms, but

these important institutions were weakened throughout the 1960s and later (Cole-

man, 1988; Garland, 2001; LaFree, 1998; Wilson & Herrnstein, 1985). The weak-

ening of these institutions, according to some scholars, contributed directly to sharp

increases in crime beginning in the 1960s (Wilson & Herrnstein, 1985, p. 217). The

precise influence of institutions and norms on crime rates is subject to dispute. The

military, however, is an institution that remains deeply rooted in norms and com-

mitted to fostering norms among service members. Given this emphasis, the military

could potentially utilize the military ethic to inculcate self-control, further stigmatize

crime, or promote law-abiding conduct. The military ethic is a cultural resource that

the military might leverage in order to combat sexual assault within the institution.

Indeed, the military has the potential to influence members’ norms to a far greater

degree than other civilian institutions; frankly, the armed forces “can implement

policy much more quickly and efficiently than civilian society” (Kuersten, 2014,

p. 92).

This article asserts that poor impulse control is at the root of a substantial portion

of sexual assault offenses. To address the root causes of sexual assault, this article

begins by tracing the connection between norms, institutions, and sexual assault and

then moves on to consider the potential of norms-based preventive policy based on

the military ethic.

Norms, the Military Ethic, and Sexual Assault

Military leaders recognize that service members’ values will reflect the values—or

lack thereof—of the larger society (Snider, Nagl, & Pfaff, 1999). Service members’

708 Armed Forces & Society 44(4)