Book Review: Thanks for Your Service: The Causes and Consequences of Public Confidence in the US Military

Authors

James "Andy" Nichols

Files

Description

Author: Christian Nikolaus Braun

Reviewed by Lieutenant Colonel James “Andy” Nichols, US Army War College class of 2023

Lieutenant Colonel James “Andy” Nichols provides a thoughtful review of Duke University professor Peter D. Feaver’s book on the reasons for—and proposed ways to maintain—the “high public confidence” that the US military has experienced since 2001. Nichols overviews Feaver’s research methodology and policy recommendations, providing potential readers useful praise of the book’s merits—particularly Feaver’s “discussions surrounding politicization (party) and public pressure”—and some critiques, namely that the policy recommendations are “underdeveloped.” Nichols concludes that “[t]he text advances policy discussions on public confidence in US government institutions, includes valuable quantitative analysis, and points to future research opportunities.”

Publication Date

5-20-2024

Keywords

public confidence, civilian-military relations, patriotism, civics, professionalism

Disciplines

Defense and Security Studies

Recommended Citation

James "Andy" Nichols, Book Review: Thanks for Your Service: The Causes and Consequences of Public Confidence in the US Military ( US Army War College Press, 2024),
https://press.armywarcollege.edu/parameters_bookshelf/45