Date of Award

Summer 1997

Document Type

Thesis

Degree Name

Master of Arts (MA)

Department

History

Committee Director

Craig M. Cameron

Committee Member

Carl Boyd

Committee Member

Lorraine Lees

Call Number for Print

Special Collections LD4331.H47 D384

Abstract

The Marine defense of the Khe Sanh Combat Base in 1968 provides an isolated model to study combat cohesion and effectiveness. Focusing on Companies K and L of the 3d Battalion, 26th Regiment, reveals that cohesion and effectiveness were composed of four interlocking components: universal, cultural, institutional, and situational. Universal sources include the primary group, ideology, esprit de corps, small unit leadership, and social systems. Culturally, Marine recruitment images and pop-culture literature and cinema, which highlighted the Corps and combat as epitomizing manhood, influenced the Khe Sanh marines. Institutionally, the Corps used Marine history and gender manipulation during boot camp to create a common bond among recruits. Situational responses selectively combine universal, cultural, and institutional sources. Combining social scientific theory, historical interpretation, and questionnaire responses from Khe Sanh veterans, this study makes an original contribution to military and Marine Corps history, and Vietnam War studies.

Rights

In Copyright. URI: http://rightsstatements.org/vocab/InC/1.0/ This Item is protected by copyright and/or related rights. You are free to use this Item in any way that is permitted by the copyright and related rights legislation that applies to your use. For other uses you need to obtain permission from the rights-holder(s).

DOI

10.25777/bn71-gy25

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