| Keywords [eng] |
Lithuania, security, military, trust, civil responsibility, patriotism, external threat, constructivism, semi-structural interview |
| Abstract [eng] |
Research on public trust in security-related institutions and people's willingness to contribute more to raising the GDP allocated to national defense. During gathered interviews it was examined how transparency, professionalism of politicians, and communication influences public trust and how other factor such as fear of external threats, patriotism and civil responsibility can have even bigger significance then trust. The research employs constructivism theory to perform semi-structured interviews to gather qualitative data on participants who are related to security. In total 27 participants were interviewed 13 from Junior Officer Command Training (JOCT), (lt. JKVM), 3 border guards, 5 active-duty military personnel, 2 employees of the Republic of Lithuania's Ministry of Internal Affairs, 3 employees of the Ministry of National Defense and one influencer closely related to Lithuanian military. Participants provided their views on geopolitical situation that involves Lithuania, views on Lithuania’s military, what percentage from Lithuania’s GDP towards security they would agree on, and their views on trust and other factors that impact people’s willingness to increase defense budget. Many participants noted significant advancements in Lithuania's military preparedness over the past four years, highlighting improvements in the defense industry, increased manpower, and international collaborations. However, they also noted issues with bureaucracy, late purchases and transparency, insufficient air reconnaissance and defense capabilities, and lack of equipment and room for everyone who wants to serve. The findings of this research reveal that, while public trust in institutions is important when analyzing people’s willingness to pay increased taxes towards security it is not the sole factor. Fear of potential threats, patriotism and civil responsibility contribute more than trust as there are many people who lack trust in government institutions but still support the idea of increasing taxes for security. Many participants also mentioned that communication should focus less on fear-based messaging and more on the importance on why a country should have a strong military capable of defending itself as it is one of the main pillars of a state and it can instill pride in people. |
