Planning a Cross-Cultural Study of Military Base Closings: The U.S. and Russia

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9402212 Hamilton This is the first phase of a major research project to study social and psychological consequences of military base closing in Russia and the United States. A cross-disciplinary and cross- cultural team of researchers will survey soldiers, their spouses, and civilians in surrounding communities and will intervene with selected subsamples to evaluate attempts to alleviate problems associated with unemployment. By conducting parallel studies in two societies with very different economic, social, and cultural conditions, this study will evaluate the stability of findings concerning the effects of unemployment, while documenting the social consequences of military demobilization. %%% By bringing together teams of researchers in Russia and the United States, this project contributes to mutual understanding in the crucial area of downsizing of these nations' military establishments. The results of the research are expected to contribute directly to sociology, psychology and social-psychology. Unemployment and other negative unintended consequences of demilitarization threaten the benefits Americans hope to gain with the end of the Cold War, and this study will improve the knowledge base on which policy-makers can make their decisions. ***