Military brat (U.S. subculture)

[1][2] The age of the phenomenon has meant military brats have also been described by a number of researchers as one of America's oldest and yet least well-known and largely invisible subcultures.

Balancing this are extensive areas which are more relaxed in character, for on-base housing, shopping, dining, recreation, sports and entertainment, as well as base chapels which host diverse religious services.

[9] For example, time is measured in 24-hour rather than 12-hour segments as in the civilian world, and distances, primarily on stateside Army posts or on many U.S. bases of all services overseas, often described in meters and kilometers (or clicks in military slang) instead of yards or miles.

[9] Although no exact figures are available, the U.S. Department of Defense estimates that approximately 15 million Americans are former or current military brats, including those who spent all or part of their childhood and/or adolescence in the lifestyle.

Military brats have been studied extensively, both from the perspective of social psychology and as a distinct and unique American subculture, although less so in terms of long-term impact of the lifestyle.

These studies look at overall patterns and individual experiences may vary widely: Some strong positives that have been identified in studies of military brat populations are a high occurrence of very resilient personalities, exceptional social skills, a high level of multicultural or international awareness, proficiency in foreign languages, and a statistically very strong affinity for careers that entail service to others.

[5][10] Studies show that ex-military kids end up pursuing service-related careers in very high numbers: military service, teaching, counseling, police, nursing and foreign service work being highly represented in military brat career statistics (in comparison to statistics on non-military brat patterns of employment choices).

[1][2] On the negative side, studies show that some former military brats struggle to develop and maintain deep, lasting relationships, and can feel like outsiders to U.S. civilian culture.

[17] Military families shop at some of the same stores, whose discounted merchandise is regulated to prevent unfair competition, so they can often end up with the same clothes and products.

[21] While no longer universal (e.g., personnel performing time critical tasks or duties like marshaling or taxiing aircraft would be exempt), anybody outside, even if participating in sports or driving a car, was/is expected to stop their activity and stand at attention.

Prior to movies at base theaters, patrons and staff stand for the National Anthem and often another patriotic song, such as "God Bless the USA".

[23] As of 2023, policy for schools in the Americas run by the Department of Defense Education Activity states that: "The Pledge of Allegiance or National Anthem will be incorporated into the morning announcements.

[31] Eighty percent of Cold War-era brats described their father as "authoritarian" or desiring to exercise complete control over their lives.

[32] They described their military parent as rigid in discipline, inflexible, intolerant of dissent, disapproving of non-conforming behavior, insensitive to their emotions, and not accepting of personal privacy.

[28] Sociologist Phoebe Price posed three possible hypotheses as to why brats are better behaved: firstly, military parents have a lower threshold for misbehavior in their children; secondly, the mobility of teenagers might make them less likely to attract attention to themselves, as many want to fit in and are less secure with their surroundings; and thirdly, normative constraints are greater, with brats knowing that their behavior is under scrutiny and can affect the military member's career.

[46] Most military brats on a personal level do not let this affect their social interactions, and in most cases it is frowned upon to treat others by their parent's pay grade or rank.

Children of military personnel attend the same base schools regardless of rank, creating peer cultures that are usually not class-based, and providing equal access to educational resources.

In 1948, nearly 20 years before the civil rights movement swept through the non-military segments of U.S. society, President Truman signed Executive Order 9981 integrating the military and mandating equality of treatment and opportunity.

"Every military commander," the Directive mandates, "has the responsibility to oppose discriminatory practices affecting his men and their dependents and to foster equal opportunity for them, not only in areas under his immediate control, but also in nearby communities where they may gather in off-duty hours.

[67] Sociologist Henry Watanabe showed that military and civilian teenagers share the same concerns and desires, but that growing up in a mobile community offers opportunities and experiences generally unavailable to geographically stable families.

[68] In 2010, the U.S. Defense Department reported that there were currently 2 million American children and teenagers who have had at least one parent deployed in a war zone in the then-current Iraq and Afghanistan conflicts.

Military personnel are now being supplemented by more government civilians and defense contractors filling essential roles, and the introduction of large megabases that intermesh different service branches and their individual cultures has also affected the demographics.

[78] Another study done by the University of California Los Angeles indicated that a year after the parent returns, 30% of children "exhibited clinical levels of anxiety.

The servicemember parent may have been a direct entry into the National Guard and may have never initially/previously served on extended active duty with the Army or Air Force.

[79] Consequently, it may be harder for teachers and health care professionals to identify and address war-deployment-related child, adolescent or family problems, unless they are specifically screened for.

The U.S. Department of Defense has designated April as "Month of the Military Child" with special programs, public educational and support activities coordinated during this time each year.

[94] Military culture has created numerous positive backronyms for "brat", such as "Born, Raised And Transferred" or "Brave, Resilient, Adaptable, and Trustworthy."

[82] In late 2014, two civilian children's book authors advocated the use of the acronym CHAMPs (Child Heroes Attached to Military Personnel) as a replacement for brat.

[2] Some sparse and superficial aspects of military brat life may be known, but a fuller sense of awareness of one of America's largest (and oldest) subcultures is largely non-existent.

[2] The documentary closes with another quote from former military brat and author Pat Conroy, who writes, We spent our entire childhoods in the service of our country, and no one even knew we were there.