Shaping beliefs : the role of military conscription

Abstract

Military conscription is one of the most prevalent policies around the world, typically affecting men at a very young age. Still, its consequences on shaping men´s beliefs remain unknown. I estimate the causal impact of mandatory military conscription on subsequent beliefs. To address potential endogeneity concerns I exploit the conscription draft lottery in Argentina. I combine administrative data on the draft with data from a purposely-designed survey on beliefs. I find that men that served in the conscription are more likely to justify violence to solve conflicts, believe that military service should be mandatory, support coups against civilian governments, accept military interventions in foreign countries, and support the right to bear arms. This paper highlights the potential role that military conscription has in shaping the beliefs of young people from all around the world.