Military and Civilian Relationships: Do They Affect Integrated Product Teams?
Abstract
The implementation of the Integrated Product Team (IPT) concept by the Department of Defense to support the acquisition process assumes that service members and DoD civilians work together productively to produce effective weapon systems. This thesis investigates military-civilian relationship issues on IPTs. Interviews were conducted with twenty-three DoD civilians and service members who have participated in Department of Defense IPTs. These interviews were consolidated and issues shared by a majority of the interviews are presented and analyzed in terms of the existing literature on inter-group conflict. All interviewees stated that these group stereotypes had no negative impact on IPT performance. Conclusions reached were that military and civilians do have positive and negative perceptions regarding the other group, and based on existing literature, these issues present challenges for the two groups to work together productively when both participate in IPTs. Models from the research literature on intergroup conflict are used to provide recommendations for addressing intergroup perceptions and improving the effectiveness of IPTs.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Mar 01, 1997
- Accession Number
- ADA331695
Entities
People
- Gail Stenger
Organizations
- Naval Postgraduate School