Product Description

The role of the military in a society raises a number of issues: How much separation should there be between a civil government and its army? Should the military be totally subordinate to the polity? Or should the armed forces be allowed autonomy in order to provide national security? In our times, the dangers of military dictatorships have become clear, but developing countries often lack the administrative ability and societal unity to keep the state functioning in an orderly and economically feasible manner without pronounced militaristic intervention.

About the Author

Samuel E. Finer (1915-1993) was professor of government at Manchester University and Gladstone Professor of Government and Public Administration at Oxford University. His published works include the monumental The History of Government from the Earliest Times. Jay Stanley, professor of sociology at Towson University, is a member of the advisory council of the Inter-University Seminar on Armed Forces and Society, and on the board of editors of its journal Armed Forces & Society. He is the co-editor of Challenges in Military Health Care, published by Transaction.