NORFOLK, Va. — A majority of Americans say they would discourage young people they know from enlisting in the military, a survey from the RAND Corporation found.
The findings could shed some light on the factors leading to the recent recruiting struggles. The Army, Air Force and Navy won't meet recruiting goals in 2023.
The recruiting chiefs from the four Defense Department military branches testified before Congress earlier this month about what's being called one the worst recruiting stretches since the U.S. all-volunteer force began in 1973.
"This recruiting crisis certainly did not begin overnight and cannot be repaired overnight," said Major General Johnny Davis, head of U.S. Army Recruiting Command.
According to the RAND Corporation's survey, a majority of Americans — 54.4% — would discourage a young person close to them from enlisting in the military.
"Obviously, it just intensifies all the questions that we've had over the last year to two years about the ability to sustain the all-volunteer force," said RAND Corporation senior sociologist Meredith Kleykamp on Tuesday in an interview with 13News Now.
But the report also finds that 61.2% of people would encourage young people to enter the officer ranks, a majority overwhelmingly have positive perceptions of veterans, and nearly one-quarter of adults believe that most Americans look up to members of the military.
Kleykamp acknowledges some of the findings are contradictory.
"There's a great deal of public respect and admiration and positive sentiment for those that choose to do this, but that doesn't seem to lead to a sense that I want to do it. Or I want to encourage people in my circle to do it."
The RAND findings were based on surveys of 2,463 Americans who participated in its American Life Survey.