A clash of cultures : exploring the perceptions and experiences of South African youth towards the military as an employer of choice
Year: 2015
Type: dissertation
Abstract: With the shift to an all-volunteer force and the end of the Cold War, armed forces across the globe are finding it increasingly difficult to attract, recruit and retain the right quantity and quality of recruits in the ranks.Similarly, the South African National Defence Force (SANDF) has expressed difficulties with recruitment but more so with the ability to attract 'high calibre' recruits in order to staff a defence force that is disciplined and technologically advanced.Although this is a consequence of various economic, social and political factors, one of the greatest challenges facing recruiters is the changing work values and preferences of the new millennial generation.As the title of this thesis postulates, evidence from the West suggests a 'clash' in values between millennials, who are individualistic, protected, ambitious and self-centred, and the military, which requires conformity, obedience and structure.While there is a vast amount of literature regarding the all-volunteer force and youth values of military service in the West, there is no study of this kind in South Africa.In this study, I aim to fill this void by exploring young South Africans' perceptions and experiences of military service.As there is no existing literature on the propensity to enlist in South Africa, focus groups and interviews were conducted with high school learners, Military Skills Development System (MSDS) members who have completed one year of military service and recruitment officers who come into contact with school-leavers from across South Africa.These discussions were framed around two broad questions, namely what are the work values of young South Africans and what factors attract young people to or deter them from the military job.The conclusion is reached that the SANDF is not an employer of choice because of various institutional and societal factors.The military job is largely unappealing to young South Africans, who are risk-averse, individualistic and wish to be in close proximity to their families.The culture of the military is also unattractive to the majority who are not receptive to authoritarian regimes that expect unquestioning obedience and discipline and emphasise hegemonic masculine ideals.Besides this, two societal forces have a significant impact on the ability of the ability of the SANDF to attract recruits.The decline in the prestige of the military job and the presence of an ever-growing civilmilitary gap indicate that youth are neither informed about the military nor see the military as a high status job in society.Consequently, the inability of the SANDF to meet recruitment targets can be detrimental to the ability of the SANDF to fulfil its mandate.
Author: Megan A. Smith
Language: English
Topic: Military and Defense Studies
Field: Social Sciences
Domain: Social Sciences
Open Access status: green
OpenAlex ID: W841480870