The study analysed certain groups in the Armed Forces on the assumption that they comprised diverse professional and organizational cultures. The purpose was to identify, for every group studied, the values underpinning their cohesion; or in other words, the origins of cohesion in the groups analysed. As regards methodology, it was decided that only the direct observation of behaviours, the analysis of reward mechanisms, and examination of strategies deemed valid and appropriate, would differentiate cultural assumptions from façade values. Observation was essential because it enabled identification of "values in action" and their distinction from declared values, thereby ensuring that the organization and its culture was not confused with the representations that its members produced of it.
Methods used: ethnographies of groups belonging to various units of the Armed Forces and the ‘team climate inventory’ questionnaire.

Researchers: Silvia Gherardi (coordinator), Enrico Piras (referent), Franco Fraccaroli, Adalgisa Battistelli, Michela Giampietro
Period: 2003 - 2004
Funding: Centro Alti Studi Difesa