Military Experience in Civilian Government Organizations: An Exploratory Study of Its Effects on a Range of Work Attitudes and Behaviors

Abstract

There is a large body of research that has comparatively explored the relationship that military experience has with the attitudes and behaviors of employees who work in military organizations. However, very few studies have extended this line of research in civilian organizations. This study seeks to add to this body of research by exploring whether there are meaningful attitude and behavioral differences between veterans and non-veterans who work in a government civilian organization. Using a sample of 500 federal employees in the United States, the findings of this study revealed that prior military experience had no meaningful relationship to the work satisfaction, performance, person-organization fit, public service motivation, work stress, nor turnover intentions of public employees. The most important predictors of the work attitudes of employees were their age, education level, full-time status, and years of work experience. The implications this study has for the field of public management are discussed.