Public confidence in the armed forces (international sociological studies)

This paper summarizes the sociological studies of public confidence in the armed forces in Western Europe and North America that are conducted to examine the attitude of the population towards social institutions. It focuses on institutions providing sociological support to the armed forces’ activities and reveals the promising areas of research of international military sociologists. The analysis of the results of sociological surveys conducted by Gallup, Edelman, Pew Research Center shows that the army clearly ranks first in the trust ratings of social and state institutions both in Western Europe and the United States. At the same time, there is a trend leading to a contradiction in the structure of confidence - among the emotional, cognitive, and behavioral components. The people of North America and Western Europe support the armed forces and military personnel, but they have a negative attitude towards military campaigns in which these armed forces are compelled to participate. Failure to understand the specific nature of the army’s activities and its insulation results in a civil-military gap. The analysis of scientific publications and research reveals the significance of the political context of trust when assessing the level of civil-military relations. The party affiliation of American respondents is a fundamental determinant of their trust/distrust in the armed forces. The climate of trust within a military organization as well as the confidence of military personnel in the social institution of military service is a significant indicator of public confidence in the armed forces.