Protest in Western militaries

Abstract

Although military personnel in Western democracies rarely resort to protest tactics, this does not mean that they never experience discontent. In light of the transformation of the military organization in the period following the Cold War, socio-economic pressures on military personnel have intensified. When facing these challenges, military personnel operate within a specific context in which the unique military culture and a specific legal framework often make engaging in protest more difficult than elsewhere in society. This article integrates the literature on the transformation of Western militaries, the unique context of the military organization and the empirical evidence on protest within the military organization. The article assesses the evidence amassed so far, identifies the limitations in the existing research and proposes an encompassing framework for future study of protest within militaries in Western democracies.