Military Brats and Other Global Nomads: Growing Up in Organization Families

(Hardback)

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Examines the social, psychological, and historical effects of growing up abroad in a military, foreign service, or other organizational family. After World War II, American political, military, corporate, and humanitarian responsibilities abroad expanded greatly. With families in tow, government officials, military service personnel, business executives, and missionaries began to travel and live, in increasing numbers, outside of their home country. Other nations followed suit. Ender examines this legacy of the late 20th century and analyzes the social, psychological, and historical imprints on people who came of age in these service organization families. Such international experiences impose specific demands on employees, their spouses and their children. These include relocation, risk of death or injury, family separation, and social controls on behavior. This collection contains thirteen essays by researchers studying children, adolescents, youth, and adults in a service organization family context, including the military, the State Department, international educators, and non-governmental organizations. The studies integrate research from sociology, psychology, child and adolescent development, family studies, and communications.

Reviews

[T[his is an important book, well worth reading. Most of the chapters provide practical recommendations for families, policy makers, and social providers. Many of these recommendations will be relevant to missionary communitities--parents, teachers, executives, and those specializing in member care. An index adds to the utility of the volume. I highly recommend this book.-Missiology An International Review
Since it is not likely that there will be fewer global nomads among our population in the future, or around the world for that matter, there is room for even more research into the problems and advantages of this lifestyle. How to help those who need it, how we can fit positive aspects of nomadic growing up into our perception of an increasingly global world are still open questions, but Dr. Ender and his contributors have made and excellent start and this is a book that "rings true," with many, many useful things to say.-H-Net Reviews
"This is an important book, well worth reading. Most of the chapters provide practical recommendations for families, policy makers, and social providers. Many of these recommendations will be relevant to missionary communitities--parents, teachers, executives, and those specializing in member care. An index adds to the utility of the volume. I highly recommend this book."-Missiology An International Review
"[T[his is an important book, well worth reading. Most of the chapters provide practical recommendations for families, policy makers, and social providers. Many of these recommendations will be relevant to missionary communitities--parents, teachers, executives, and those specializing in member care. An index adds to the utility of the volume. I highly recommend this book."-Missiology An International Review
"Since it is not likely that there will be fewer global nomads among our population in the future, or around the world for that matter, there is room for even more research into the problems and advantages of this lifestyle. How to help those who need it, how we can fit positive aspects of nomadic growing up into our perception of an increasingly global world are still open questions, but Dr. Ender and his contributors have made and excellent start and this is a book that "rings true," with many, many useful things to say."-H-Net Reviews

Author Bio

MORTEN G. ENDER is Assistant Professor of Sociology in the Department of Behavioral Sciences and Leadership at the United States Military Academy at West Point.