This monograph examines the effect of allowing women into the infantry in the U.S. Army. It focuses on aspects of the moral domain - cohesion, bonding, morale and stress. It attempts to answer the question: Will small level infantry unit (i.e. crew, team, section, squad and platoon) cohesion be affected by the introduction of women into the infantry ranks? The monograph first establishes the nature of infantry combat and the importance of the moral domain in motivating and sustaining the infantryman in battle. The monograph then examines two psychological phenomena in the presentation of two theoretical frameworks to understand the group dynamics of primarily all-male groups. The first phenomenon is male bonding. The second phenomenon is the dynamics of groups towards "tokens". "Tokens" are members of a group who have physically recognizable traits and who make up less than fifteen percent of the group. Finally, the paper reviews the scientific, historical, and anecdotal evidence supporting or refuting the theories. The monograph concludes that, although the evidence is inconclusive, there is sufficient evidence to approach the decision of allowing women to enter the infantry ranks cautiously. Sexual harassment problems that have occurred over the last fifteen years in integrating women into the military may support predictions of the theoretical frameworks explored in the body of the monograph.

ADA 262478 Approved for public release; Distribution is unlimited. The opinions and conclusions expressed herein are those of the student-authors and do not necessarily represent the views of the U.S. Army Command and General Staff College or any other governmental agency. (References to these studies should include the foregoing statement.)