THE EFFECTS OF CONSCRIPT SERVICE ON THE RECRUITMENT OF PROFESSIONAL SOLDIERS IN ESTONIA

Abstract

Povzetek Estonske obrambne sile so urejene po načelu rezervnih sil, zato je v Estoniji v veljavi obvezno služenje vojaškega roka. V tem članku preučujemo, kako sistem obveznega služenja vojaškega roka vpliva na proces pridobivanja kadra v estonskih obrambnih silah (EOS). S pomočjo podatkov iz ankete, izvedene med estonskimi naborniki, bomo preučili individualne in strukturne dejavnike, ki vplivajo na to, koliko so EOS zanimive kot delodajalec med naborniki. Testirali smo dve predpostavki, ki temeljita na teoriji. (1) Ob upoštevanju pristopa družbenega učenja predpostavljamo, da pozitivne in negativne izkušnje v času obveznega služenja vojaškega roka lahko vplivajo na namero posameznika, da se zaposli kot poklicni pripadnik. (2) Na podlagi predpostavke o izbiri predvidevamo, da bodo tisti, ki so imeli pred vpoklicem pozitivne izkušnje z vojaškim načinom življenja, sprejeli obvezno služenje vojaškega roka v bolj pozitivni luči in jim bodo obrambne sile kot delodajalec zato še bolj zanimive. Rezultati kažejo, da je predpostavka o izbiri bolj podprta. To pomeni, da se pozitiven odnos do obrambnih sil in namen, da se posameznik tam zaposli, ne oblikujeta med služenjem vojaškega roka, temveč na to bolj vplivajo izkušnje pred vpoklicem ter sodelovanje v prostovoljnih organizacijah, povezanih z vojsko ali nacionalno varnostjo. Lahko bi rekli, da se odnos, ki ga je nabornik razvil pred obveznim služenjem, s služenjem vojaškega roka še bolj utrdi. Ključne besede: obvezno služenje vojaškega roka, naborništvo, pridobivanje kadra, obrambne sile, Estonija. Abstract The Estonian Defence Forces have been structured according to the principle of reserve force, and therefore Estonia uses compulsory conscription. In this paper, we will explore how the compulsory military service system influences the recruitment process into the Estonian Defence Forces (EDF). More precisely, we will study the individual and structural factors that determine the perceived attractiveness of the EDF as an employer among conscripts by using data from the Estonian Conscript Survey. We are testing two theory-driven assumptions: (1) following the social learning approach, we assume that positive and negative experiences during the conscription period may have an influence on the intention to continue as a professional in the military; (2) based on the selection hypothesis, we assume that those who have had positive experiences with the military way of life before being drafted will perceive compulsory military service in a more positive light, and therefore the attractiveness of the Defence Forces as an employer may even increase. The results show that the selection hypothesis has stronger support. It means that positive attitudes and the intention to join the defence forces are not formed during the service, but rather pre-conscription experience and involvement in voluntary organizations related to the military or interior security have a bigger influence. The service could be seen as affirming the attitudes that the conscript had already developed prior to conscript service. Key words: conscription, recruitment, defence forces, Estonia