Military Boot Camp - Past and Present

Boot camp in the Military, especially in the US has changed drastically in recent years. In the past instructors were permitted to abuse the recruits, both physically and verbally. Hitting, insulting, and abusing recruits was seen as a legitimate method to teach recruits toughness and resiliency, especially in the US Marine Corps. Compare that to present day, in the United States Navy where recruits are not even forced to endure high levels of stress and have the right to take a break if they feel too stressed. Another major change to the military that has affected boot camp has been integrating women into the forces. Most major militaries have now begun to include women into more roles in the armed forces which means that these women now need to go through boot camp as well. Overall since the 1950-1970’s militaries around the world have been rolling out changes in an attempt to improve the quality of soldiers, airmen, and sailors that boot camp produces.

The amount of verbal and physical abuse inflicted on recruits in boot camp has steadily decreased especially since the 1970’s. In past years instructors were permitted to do almost anything to the recruits, including physically and verbally abusing them. The instructors could go as far as to punch, slap, or hit the recruits as they saw fit and the rules were much more lenient on what was permissible to yell at recruits, including personal attacks or insults. In present day the rules are much more strict regarding what is and is not acceptable for the instructors to do. For example, instructors are no longer allowed to assault recruits and in some countries and branches instructors are not permitted to even touch recruits in any situation unless the recruit is putting themselves or someone else in danger. The effect of abuse in the military has long been studied and it has resulted in new regulations and rules limiting the amount of violence and harassment that occurs in boot camp and through a person’s military career.

The severity of physical, mental, and emotional stress that the recruits are forced to endure has also changed significantly in recent years. In the past the only way out for a recruit if they could not handle the stress was to drop out and quit. The instructors place huge amounts of stress on recruits so they can see how well they can perform under stress, and the recruits had only two options, either to step it up and learn to handle it, or to drop out. In the modern military, recruits in some countries and branches, such as the US Navy, are given an easy way out. In the US Navy, recruits are given a “blue card” (1) at the beginning of training. Blue cards are little cards that recruits can hand to the instructors “if they are feeling blue” or if they feel too stressed, this forces the instructor to let them take a break or for the instructor to not be as hard on them. In many countries the physical requirements have also been lowered. The fitness tests that military members must pass to meet the physical standards required by the armed forces have become less strenuous. For example, in the US Navy it is now common for recruits to only have physical training as little as three times per week. (2) Overall, in many ways the expectations for our men and women in arms has lessened over time.

Another large change that has occurred recently is the full integration of women into the armed forces. This means that major changes also had to be made with boot camp in order to account for the addition of women. For example, in the Canadian Forces women are fully integrated with the males in boot camp and are together with the males for everything except for sleeping quarters and washrooms. Whereas in the US Marine Corps, women go through bootcamp and are trained entirely separate from the males and the Marine Corps has no plans to change that. (3) As well, some of the fitness standards in some countries were also changed to accommodate having women in the forces. In the US Marines their Physical Fitness Test was changed so that women have the choice between doing pull-ups or doing a timed flexed-arm hang. While many changes have been made to boot camp and the military in general to accommodate women in the forces the overall atmosphere in the military and boot camp has remained mostly the same.

All in all, over the course of the past 60-70 years, the military and more specifically, boot camp has been undergoing major changes. From the addition of women to the military, to diminishing the amount of verbal and physical abuse inflicted on recruits, and easing up on the amount of physical and mental stress the recruits have to endure, the military has progressed in huge ways. Evidently, boot camp will continue to change as they find the best way to turn civilians into hardened, tough members of the armed forces.