The Professional Soldier: A Social and Political Portrait
by Morris Janowitz

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Book Review: A rewarding study of the military's role in American society
Summary: 4 Stars

In the vein of the social scientist, Janowitz puts forth five basic hypotheses and seeks to test them. Briefly encapsulated, these five hypotheses concern: a changing organizational authority, one more oriented to group consensus than to unqualified directives; a narrowing skill differential between military and civilian elites, brought together by the military's increasing dependence on technical specialists; a shift in officer recruitment to a broad socioeconomic base; the importance of adaptiveness and boldness in reaching an elite position in the military; and the development of a "political ethos" around the military profession in the modern age. He describes a changing role for the military elite; the modern "professional" soldier must somehow maintain an aura of "heroism" while also serving in a position of management of men and machines, topped off by a commitment to public service--both nationally and internationally.

Determining the future role of the military is made more difficult by a rift between two schools of thought within the military profession. The traditional school sees war as "absolute" and inevitable, a means by which to achieve political goals. This "conservative" mindset has been challenged during the atomic age, as more "liberal" thinkers, fearing the unpredictable effects of modern warfare, promote a "pragmatic" approach to warfare, with an emphasis on adaptation of military means and negotiation as the proper means by which to secure political ends. Janowitz and other social scientists favor the "pragmatic" approach, arguing that because the military cannot possibly remain in isolation from the polity, both civilians and the military elite must cooperate in the interest of mankind both at home and abroad.

Janowitz incorporates into his study qualitative sources involving individual human perceptions as well as quantitative data from questionnaires and statistical profiles. He is not entirely successful at incorporating a historical dimension into his argumentative framework, and there is a lack of documentation for a number of generalized notions he espouses. There are, as well, a number of factual errors--e.g., his reference to the historian John Hope Franklin as James Franklin Hope. This book is designed to make the reader ask new questions of the role of the military in American society, and in this it is successful. 40+ years after its original publication, it is still a valuable read.

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