Psychological, Social and Attitudinal Variables Associated with Infantry Combat Effectiveness and their Relation to Women

摘要

Currently, consideration is being given to opening up combat occupations to women. This thesis reviewed relevant literature in the fields of psychology and sociology, and found that several individual and group variables (body dimensions, personality, activity level, and social cohesion) were related to adequate combat performance. The results of the literature search suggest that women may not be as well suited to combat as are men. In addition, 55 graduate students were asked to rate 51 jobs as to suitability for women. The results of the questionnaire were analyzed using multidimensional scaling and cluster analysis. The analysis resulted in the identification of two criteria that appear to have been used by the subjects to rate the jobs: traditional masculine/feminine occupations, and the degree to which a job was or was not physically demanding. (Author)