The role of subgroup leaders in combatant socialization and resocialization: The British re-education program for German POWs (1946–1948)

Abstract What explains the variation in combatant socialization and resocialization outcomes? Why do some combatants adopt the intended norms of their organization while others resist them? Combatants regularly undergo intensive socialization and ‘resocialization’ processes within total institutions – regimented environments like armed organizations and re-education programs that seek to alter their norms. Total institutions profoundly shape the behaviors and attitudes of combatants during and after conflict. However, even within these controlled environments, combats develop norms differently, and it is still not clear what factors drive this variation in combatant preference formation. This article presents and tests a framework that combatant socialization is in part driven by subgroups – the smaller social units within total institutions that form the informal structure and environment of combatants. Specifically, subgroup leaders moderate socialization processes by reinforcing or undermining the official norms of the organization. To test this expectation, I leverage archival data from the British re-education program for German POWs (1946–1948) which sought to ‘democratize’ them. To facilitate re-education, British officials installed pro-democratic POWs into subgroup leadership positions in select camps. Using a novel dataset constructed from hand-coded administrative reports, I measure the effect of subgroup leadership type on socialization outcomes. The results suggest that subgroup leaders moderate socialization outcomes.