Culture, Military

Culture is most easily defined as the values, behaviors, norms, and artifacts that define how a social group interacts with the world. Like all groups, the military developed its own culture to achieve its mission. The armed forces of the United States share many elements of military culture, including basic training, hierarchical organizations, and promotion based on merit. The unique missions and orientations of each branch of the armed forces led each to develop its own culture that includes its mission, history, and traditions—its sense of self. The U.S. Air Force (USAF), U.S. Army, U.S. Marine Corps, and U.S. Navy (USN) have therefore developed unique cultures based on how they experience war, and that is the focus of this entry.