Military Service and the Life-Course Perspective: A Turning Point for Military Personnel Research

The political and scientific climate is ready for a change in perspective in the field of military personnel psychology. Although more than 200,000 of America's most fit young men and women pass through the military establishment each year, we know very little about the effects of their early military experiences on their life choices or on their subsequent military or civilian careers. Recent interest in these issues shown by Congress, the press, and the Department of Defense (DoD) strongly suggests that psychologists need to address research questions that can evaluate the real lifetime costs and benefits of military service. Current military personnel research approaches are inadequate for this task. Life-course theory is presented as a viable and vigorous conceptual and analytic framework for accomplishing this mission.