Life Long Learning in the Army
Sexual assault is a significant health problem facing military populations. In recent years, many cases of sexual harassment in military settings have been reported. The military environments have unique pressures that facilitate sexual violence among the militants. In most of the military settings, the number of women is much less compared to women. As a result, women in military service can easily be disrespected through sexual assault. The leadership structure in the military service also contributes to sexual violence. Higher ranking officers have been reported to have sexually abused their juniors, and even intervened convictions against them. To instill core values such as mutual respect and protection in the military environments, prevention of sexual assault in the military has become a significant priority.
Due to the unique pressures in military environments, sexual assault has become a significant public health concern among the militants. In the United States, the prevalence rate of sexual assault during military service is 4 to 7 percent among women and 1 to 2 percent among men (Orchowski, Berry, & Prisock, 2018). Therefore, the rate of occurrence of sexual assault among the military populations is higher than the rate of occurrence of sexual violence among the civilian populations. Several factors explain why the cases of sexual assault among military populations are too high. The demographics in military environments is a key factor that contributes to sexual assault among the military populations. In the military service, most of the militants are young single males and females, which makes some of the militants to become sexually aggressive, ending up assaulting others. Sexual trauma is also another factor that has contributed to the increase in sexual assault cases in the military service. Some of the militants stay away from their families for the military service, making them suffer psychological trauma. Physiological trauma causes the militants to assault their fellow militants sexually. Also, the leadership structure in the military contributes to sexual violence. The senior military officers sexually abuse their juniors and prevent any conviction against them. Various training approaches have been adopted to prevent sexual assault in the military.
The current approach to training helps to reduce the risks of sexual harassment among military populations. An educated military community led by knowledgeable and informed leaders is critical in the prevention of sexual assault. In the current training approach, the army leaders are taught on the myths and facts surrounding sexual assault. Training the military leaders on the facts about sexual violence helps to create a preventive culture in the military environment. The kind of training has also contributed to creating a safe reporting environment. Currently, more military members have boldly come out to report any forms of sexual harassment because of the creation of a safe reporting culture. To educate the military community and increase awareness of sexual assault, SHARP training is used (Bennett, 2018). From the SHARP training, the military members are taught on the offender tactics, and how to intervene and stop sexual assault incidence from occurring. SHARP training has significantly helped to reduce sexual harassment cases in the military.
More programs need to be initiated to ultimately end the problem of sexual assault among the military populations. The existing programs, such as the Sexual Health and Responsibility Program (SHARP) has helped to restore ethics and values in the military service (Urben, 2014). However, to completely end any form of sexual assault in the military, more programs need to be implemented. Military soldiers need to be given regular breaks to visit their families. Constraining the soldiers in the military service for long periods causes the soldiers to develop sexual and psychological trauma. A program that ensures that soldiers visits and interacts with their loved ones regularly will effectively reduce sexual harassment in the military. Also, military leaders need to be trained on the importance of accountability. Some military high ranking officials are bribed to end convictions regarding sexual harassments. Therefore, a program that instils the value of accountability among military leaders will help to reduce cases of sexual violence in military settings.
In conclusion, sexual assault is a major public health problem facing the military. As a result, sexual violence among military populations has become a major concern. Statistics reveal that the prevalence of sexual assault is higher in the military than in civilians. The structure of leadership and psychological trauma in military environments are some of the factors that contribute to sexual violence in the military. Several measures such as Sexual Health and Responsibility Program has currently helped to reduce the risks of sexual assault in the military. However, more programs and policies need to be initiated to instill the right core values among the military soldiers. Teaching military leaders on the importance of accountability will create a safe reporting environment for sexual assault cases, which will reduce sexual violence in the military.
References
Bennett, J. (2018). Combating sexual assault with the military ethic: Exploring culture, military institutions, and norms-based preventive policy. Armed Forces & Society, 44(4), 707- 730.
Orchowski, L., Berry, C. S., & Prisock, K. (2018). Evaluations of Sexual Assault Prevention Programs in Military Settings: A Synthesis of the Research Literature. 421-428.
Urben, H. (2014). Extending SHARP Best Practices. Military Review, 94(2), 29.