Basic Traing going down.

[Merkinball]

As if Army boot camp wasn't a big enough joke already...

 

[EdCase]

I went through a more traditional training regimen with DIs yelling at us 24/7. We sure as hell were not afraid of our DIs, and if anything, basic taught us NOT to be afraid in tough circumstances.

QFT.
British Army myself but the principles remain the same.
Small useless fact.. day after Passing Out..before I left for Battallion I and others went out drinking with some of our instructors. We were no longers "crows" but soldiers and worthwhile having a beer with..

 

[storealex]

So do you think that hardcore boot camp is inefficient at judging the psychological strength of a soldier, or that nowadays it does not matter as much as it once did, or a combination of both perhaps?

This is probably where my opinion is based on the Danish system, where basictraining is the draft, and the purpose isn't to kick out all the weak ones, but teach everyone but the most useless some basic knowledge and skills. After the draft, about 1/3 of the recruits sign up for the professional army, and get 8 more months of training, with a high pace. Demands are very high, and lot's of people drop out or quit, but they aren't treated with disrespect from their superiors. It's my experience that you get the best soldiers if you:

- Have high standards, and demand that they are met.
- Do everything you can to teach and coach soldiers who have problems meeting the demands.
- Your soldiers trust you. You are their substitute father, who they can go to if they have problems, but who they also respect and wont let down. And who can still yell at them - if needed.
- Kick out the ones who are beyond help.

Other systems might work for other countries and other cultures, but this one sure as hell works where Im from.

 

[Solver]

You have been watching too much "Full Metal Jacket" and apparently never went to boot camp. The entire point of the yelling and such is to teach people to NOT hold it inside...after about the 2nd week of basic training, it was almost viewed as a game between the Drills and the recruits as to how much we could make a drill yell. It gave us confidence in knowing a drill couldnt get to you....not hate.

If someone expresses excessive violence, such as striking out for being yelled at...it was an instant ticket out of boot.

Hardly too much FMJ. I've seen the movie once.

Yes, if a recruit strikes out for being yelled at, he gets booted... that doesn't help the problem. The recruit wants to stay so he will not react to being yelled at in any violent manner... he's not going to hit the drill sergeant or tell him to screw himself. So he'd be more likely to react violently in situations where he can do so - maybe being brutal to civilians or prisoners of war, maybe just being too trigger-happy in combat.

This is, of course, entirely speculative on my behalf. I am no master of human psychology, and I am certainly no soldier.

 

[EdCase]

Hardly too much FMJ. I've seen the movie once.

Yes, if a recruit strikes out for being yelled at, he gets booted... that doesn't help the problem. The recruit wants to stay so he will not react to being yelled at in any violent manner... he's not going to hit the drill sergeant or tell him to screw himself. So he'd be more likely to react violently in situations where he can do so - maybe being brutal to civilians or prisoners of war, maybe just being too trigger-happy in combat.

This is, of course, entirely speculative on my behalf. I am no master of human psychology, and I am certainly no soldier.

Or maybe just maybe....he/she becomes mentally adjusted to reacting in a level headed fashion under duress. Becoming more effective in a high stress combat enviroment where a "highly strung" sensitive little flower would breakdown and cry.
There truely is a reason for "stress testing" recruits. Being over emotional or sensitive are not good qualities in a soldier.

 

[storealex]

I agree with you EdCase, in that it's important to stress test your soldiers, but I firmly believe humiliating them is the wrong approach. I'd rather stress them by pressuring them with lot's of damanding tasks in short time, with little food, little sleep and lot's of heavy stuff to carry. And the occasional explosions and shooting around them of course