Peacekeeping and U.N. Operational Control. A Study of Their Effect on Unit Cohesion

Unit cohesion, the human element in combat, is critical to a unit's ability to survive and conduct successful warfare. Several factors can degrade unit cohesion and subsequently, combat effectiveness. This study concentrates on two such factors, U.S./U.N. operational control and operations other than war (OOTW). A survey was conducted on 300 U.S. Marine Corps soldiers. The results revealed that non-traditional missions were acceptable to a majority of the soldiers if these missions were conducted in the United States and under U.S. operational control. When the question shifted to missions conducted outside the U.S., however, a notable shift towards negative responses occurred. The most significant responses were to missions conducted under United Nations operational control. Fully 64.0 percent of the soldiers disagreed with participation in any of the missions listed when under United Nations operational control.