Elites and Death in Vietnam and Other U.S. Wars: A Research Note

Research on class bias in military service has focused on service and death among the economically disadvantaged during the Vietnam War. This study uses the war records of elite colleges to examine elite participation in five major wars. Significant differences in elite participation across wars are found, with lower rates during the Civil, Korean, and Vietnam Wars and higher rates during the World Wars. The similarities between Korea and Vietnam indicate that political unrest related to the Vietnam War was not the sole cause of low levels of elite participation. Changes in the size and structure of the post–World War II military are hypothesized as alternative causal factors.