Is the US Military Suffering from a Leadership Crisis?
General John R. Allen (L), incoming commander, International Security Assistance Force (ISAF)/U.S. Forces- Afghanistan (USFOR-A) and General David H. Petraeus, commander, ISAF/USFOR-A, attend a meeting in Kabul, Afghanistan in this July 9, 2011 file photograph. The top U.S. commander in Afghanistan, General John Allen, is under investigation for alleged inappropriate communication with a woman at the center of the scandal involving former CIA Director David Petraeus, a senior U.S. defense official said on November 13, 2012. REUTERS/Joshua Treadwell/U.S. Navy/Handout (AFGHANISTAN – Tags: MILITARY CRIME LAW POLITICS) FOR EDITORIAL USE ONLY. NOT FOR SALE FOR MARKETING OR ADVERTISING CAMPAIGNS. THIS IMAGE HAS BEEN SUPPLIED BY A THIRD PARTY. IT IS DISTRIBUTED, EXACTLY AS RECEIVED BY REUTERS, AS A SERVICE TO CLIENTS
The widening scandals involving Generals Petraeus and Allen have many taking a close look at today’s military leaders.
In fact, concerns over the US military’s leadership at all levels has been growing for some time.
That’s because personal failings, and the fallout from those failings, can ripple through the ranks and cause a crisis of confidence.
At West Point, for example, the US Army has a leadership center which looks at these issues.
We speak with Martin L. Cook, who holds the Stockdale Chair in Professional Military Ethics at the US Naval War College in Newport, Rhode Island.
He’s been looking at leadership issues in the Navy, and tells us how the so-called “Bathsheba Effect” may help explain recent military scandals.