Why do soldiers go to war? The question has been debated in military studies since Samuel Stouffer''s large-scale research project which led to the publication of The American Soldier in the wake of World War II. In that study, Stouffer and his colleagues showed that the American GI did not first and foremost fight for his nation. Instead, the combat soldier fought for the man next to him, for the outfit he was part of. In a more recent study of American soldiers participating in the 2003 invasion of Iraq, Leonard Wong from the Army War College demonstrated that buddy cohesion is still among the prime motivating factors of fighting men. Moreover, Wong showed that the introduction of the All-Volunteer-Force means that national motives have now re-entered the agenda. In this paper, I intend to examine the impact of experience on these motives for the modern serviceman. My general hypothesis is that the new-comer fights for different reasons than his experienced comrades. Based on a survey conducted in January 2011 with servicemen from two Danish companies bound for the war-zone in Afghanistan, I will try to clarify why these young men and women are willing to risk their lives in conflicts far away from home. One of the companies consists mainly of experienced professional soldiers, who has been deployed to war zones several times. The other of soldiers who have just finished their draft service and who are about to start on their first tour.
