In light of the growing negative narrative about migrants in the United States, largely influenced by the recent general election, a study conducted by the University of Utah indicates that this demographic displays a greater willingness to participate in civic and military service compared to native-born citizens.
"Immigrants' commitment to the U.S. may be much stronger than people think, and their appreciation for the values and opportunities the U.S. offers are things they may feel willing to fight for, protect, and defend," said Professor Christopher Simon, lead author of the study, which also includes Canada.
Simon and his team's research highlights that migrants from Mexico, Colombia, the Dominican Republic, Ecuador, the Philippines, China, Germany, Taiwan, and the United Kingdom show a greater willingness to fight for the security of the U.S. and Canada through service in the military and navy than Americans themselves.
Nicholas Lovrich, co-author of the study, professor emeritus of political science at Washington State University, and current research associate at the University of Utah, said that in this sense, the anti-immigrant attitude could be detrimental to national security in the U.S.
The research also warns that the U.S. military system faces significant recruiting challenges that, were it not for enlisted migrants, the country would be facing a crisis.
"We used to recruit a broader spectrum of Americans from diverse areas, both geographically and otherwise, willing to serve, but that is declining almost everywhere. The group with the strongest support is immigrants coming to this country," Lovrich said.
Indicators show that families in the U.S. are getting smaller; the fewer members a nuclear family has, the fewer Americans want their children to enter the military.
"All of these indicators are going in the opposite direction of recruiting, except for immigrants. So it doesn't make much sense to close our borders to those coming from overseas at this time."
There are 1.3 million active duty military personnel in the U.S., or 2 million if reserves are included. That is about 1% of the adult population. The percentage is declining annually, so, according to the study, recruiting goals still need to be met.
The Utah research revealed that immigrants enlist in the military not so much out of a militaristic or nationalistic attitude, as Americans do, but out of a sense of connection to country and civic service.
"People are not blindly saying they are willing to serve [in the military]," Simon commented. "In some cases, for example, they're saying they're less willing to fight if it's a war between countries, but more willing if it's a terrorism-related issue."
The research, Simon noted, was based on social identity theory and depth psychology theory, "that generated a pretty robust study by extending our theoretical framework beyond the existing literature on military sociology."
The Utah research, which also involved military experts, leads to the conclusion that U.S. security depends heavily on migrants and that the anti-immigrant narrative is, therefore, detrimental to the country.
Source: https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/10.1177/0095327X241269905
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