Military Professionalism: Changes in the Australian Defence Force

Abstract

Significant changes in the technology and organization of war have caused commensurate changes in the structure of the military organization. One of the major results concerns the combat-oriented image of the military role, which corresponds less and less to what officers actually do. Increasingly, many middle-level and senior appointments in Western military forces are located in central departments of defense. This article suggests that such professional role change should be accompanied by a change in professional identity; this proposition was tested in a survey of officers in the Australian Defence Force. Data were gathered from some 1,400 regular officers in the navy, army, and air force by mailed questionnaire and interview. The results show that many officers not only react negatively to service in the Australian Department of Defence but also feel less competent in their jobs there, as well as less adequately prepared for them, when compared with officers serving elsewhere in the ADF. These findings are taken as evidence of a failure in the military profession to adapt professional role identities to changed circumstances. Implications for these findings are discussed.