For too long military cohesion scholars have focused on regular infantry forces. This article examines the impact of the Future Reserves 2020 (FR20) policy on cohesion, professionalism, and discipline among British reserve logisticians. In doing so, it makes three significant contributions to the cohesion literature. Firstly, addressing scholars’ almost exclusive focus on regular infantry, it presents the first academic study on cohesion in British reserve logistics forces. Secondly, in detailing how cohesion in these forces is based on interpersonal rather than professional bonds, it argues that the locus of cohesion and discipline in these forces is different to that recently identified in the regular professional infantry. Thirdly, the article argues that while FR20 is gradually changing many of British reserve norms, the organizational realities of reserve service continue to limit the policy's impact. The evidence presented may be theoretically applicable to other reserve and noncombat forces in future cohesion research.
The British Army Reserve (AR), and in particular its logistics component, is undergoing profound changes. The Future Reserves 2020 policy aims to expand the AR and make it more deployable on operations. However, to date, FR20 has struggled to attract the recruits required to man this more deployable reserve force, despite recruitment campaigns offering increased monetary benefits. This study sampled AR logistics soldiers’ reasons for joining, remaining in service, and mobilizing when deployed. Consistent with the previous research, the study found that soldiers who joined for institutional reasons were more associated with longer career intentions and mobilizing for intrinsic reasons. Soldiers who joined for occupational reasons were less satisfied with all elements of reserve service and deployed in order to fulfill their contracts. These trends suggest that recruitment campaigns that stress the pecuniary benefits of reserve service may attract soldiers less committed to reserve service and deployments and who are harder to retain.
There is growing evidence that simultaneous to the Revolution in Military Affairs (RMA), a less obvious, but equally profound, Revolution in Military Logistics (RML) has occurred that shapes and underpins western military effectiveness. However, there has been no conceptualisation of this RML nor its wider effect on Western force structures. This article addresses this gap in the security literature. Using an interdisciplinary literature review and case studies, it makes two central contributions: first, it details how western military logistics systems and practises have transformed following post-Fordist principles in the last two decades. In doing so, second, it contributes a major new conceptual framework to the military logistics and security studies literature. Finally, the implications of these processes for military effectiveness are examined, with the conclusion asserting that the cumulative effect of this post-Fordist RML has potentially increased western militaries' strategic vulnerability.
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