Prioritization of the Reasons for Desertion from Military Service in the Islamic Republic of Iran: A Quantitative Study

Abstract

Introduction: Conscripts are one of the most critical elements of the corporate body of the Islamic Republic of Iran’s army. Therefore, keeping soldiers safe from potential harm impacts improves military performance. Desertion from military is one of the results of possible psychological/physical injuries, whose control is rooted in the precise identification of those injuries as the reasons leading to the desertion of soldiers.

Objective: The present study has been carried out while adopting a quantitative approach to prioritize the reasons for desertion from military service.

Materials and methods: The present study used library and field methods to collect the reasons for desertion from military service. The results of these two methods formed the qualitative data of the research. In the following, the qualitative data were converted into qualitative data, weighted, and then prioritized using the TOPSIS method, one of the popular methods used in multi-criteria decision-making (MCDM).

Results: Based on the results obtained from the TOPSIS method, the most important reasons for desertion from military service were prioritized as follows: economic issues> psychological problems> service time> social injuries> pressure from fellow service members> behavior of cadre personnel> place of service> commanders' management> sexual issues.

Discussion and conclusion: The quantitative approach used in the current research makes it possible to prioritize the reasons behind desertion from military service with high accuracy and is considered a complement to previous qualitative research. Finally, this research suggests the government put its result into consideration for better management of military desertion.