Good morning. My name is Karen Davis, and I am a defence scientist with Director General Military Personnel Research and Analysis, an organization that belongs to Defence Research and Development Canada and conducts research for the Chief of Military Personnel.
I have been conducting social science research in the Canadian Forces for 20 years, initially as a military personnel selection officer, and in the most recent 12 years, as a defence scientist with DRDC.
My current assignment is as a defence scientist with the Canadian Forces Leadership Institute, a unit of the Canadian Defence Academy in Kingston. The Canadian Forces Leadership Institute conducts research, and develops concepts in support of professional development in the Canadian Forces.
My short presentation today draws on my experience over the past 20 years with conducting social science research on gender-related experiences in the Canadian Forces. As I draw on this experience, the interpretation and views I present are my responsibility and do not necessarily reflect the position of the Department of National Defence.
Throughout the 1990s, women were much more likely to leave the Canadian Forces than were their male counterparts. The research I conducted in 1993 and 1994 placed a particular focus on the experiences of women from across various military occupations and environments, who had left the Canadian Forces after serving more than 10 but less than 20 years. At the time this was significant because CF members were eligible to receive a military pension upon completion of 20 years of service, and the attrition rate of women was higher than that of men during these years between 10 and 20 years.
The research concluded that those women who left were very likely to have experienced significant harassment and eventually chose to leave the military because they had exhausted all efforts to effectively negotiate the complaint process and escape the harassment.
In 1997 the Chief of the Land Staff, who is the commander of the army, asked the Canadian Forces personnel applied research unit to investigate why women were leaving the combat arms at a rate much higher than their male counterparts. Our research at the time confirmed that, for the most part, women were not valued in the combat arms environment and their experience was frequently characterized by discrimination, gender-related harassment and sexual harassment. In addition, the experiences of these women were often minimized and dismissed by leadership.
The experience of women in the combat arms in the 1990s very clearly demonstrated the overwhelming importance of effective leadership. It did not matter whether women were a “one of” or in relatively large groups in a combat arms unit, the quality of their experience was largely dependent upon leadership.
It is important to note that these findings cannot be generalized to the experience of women serving across the Canadian Forces today. Many are choosing to stay and complete full and successful careers in a range of environments and roles. Today, most women in the CF experience a fair and equitable environment and enjoy professional and social support from CF leaders and their team members, regardless of gender, often in isolated and demanding operational environments. Also, the attrition rates of women and men from the Canadian Forces in the last decade are much more similar than they were prior to 2000.
As noted by Mr. Karol Wenek in November, there are indications that women have become less likely to experience harassment in the military since 1992. Harassment survey data collected in the CF in 1992 and 1998 indicate that while women remained much more likely than their male counterparts to report experience of sexual harassment, the reported rate of sexual harassment among servicewomen dropped from 26.2% in 1992 to 14% in 1998.
As Mr. Wenek also noted, two data points do not constitute a trend, so the results of the 2012 harassment survey will be very important in assessing the frequency of harassment in the Canadian Forces today.
In our 2001 analysis of harassment surveys across TTCP nations, Nicki Holden and I suggested that anonymous surveys of perceived experience of harassment were the best available method for determining the extent to which women experience harassment in the military.
Although women may choose not to submit a harassment complaint, or when they do submit a complaint the complaint may be unfounded through the complaint process, the perception of harassment for them is real, and they believe they've been harassed and this is an important indicator of the quality of their experience in the military.
In some of those areas in which women have the lowest representation in the military, such as in the combat arms and on board ships, they are very likely to be in situations where they're the only woman or one of very few women in a deployed operational environment. It is possible that the vulnerability of these small numbers of women is heightened by the socially gendered and geographic isolation of their employment, as well as the scarcity, if not complete absence, of female leaders in that environment.
However, many women within such situations in the Canadian Forces have experienced positive support from male subordinates, peers, and leaders, and there are a greater number of women in leadership positions in operational domains than was the case in the 1990s.
Between 2003 and 2007, the Canadian Forces Leadership Institute developed a series of leadership doctrinal manuals. Within this doctrine, the foundation for effective leadership is a values-based model that is heavily influenced by military ethos, that is, those values, principles, and priorities that reflect both military principles and Canadian values. Although the CF leadership model does not specifically address harassment, it does place emphasis on values-based domains that contribute to mission success, that is, external adaptability, internal integration, and member commitment and well-being. This doctrine and the values reflected within it guide the development of military leaders today.
I am currently conducting research regarding the deployment experiences of women and men in the Canadian Forces. Although the data collection and analysis is not complete, I have conducted over 50 in-depth interviews. The data is based upon qualitative interviews and are not statistically representative of the CF. However, experience of harassment and sexual harassment is not a prevalent theme across these interviews, but in those cases in which there are perceptions of harassment in recent years, some military women have become frustrated in finding a resolution. If the problem is within their chain of command, the challenge is exacerbated. In other cases, situations have been resolved quickly by leadership.
For most, a harassment complaint is a last resort. In all cases, it is clear that leadership has a significant influence on the way in which harassment is addressed in the working environment.
In closing, there is every reason to believe that women are less likely to experience harassment and sexual harassment today than was the case more than a decade ago. Negative attitudes toward women in the military still exist but are less prevalent. More women are in senior leadership positions, and leaders, whether male or female, are more likely to accept responsibility for establishing a climate of respect for women and men in the workplace.
Regardless of the number of incidents that do occur, the challenge remains in ensuring effective implementation of Canadian Forces policy by all leaders across the organization.
Thank you.