---
title: "Small Share of Americans in Active Military Duty"
description: "Despite more than a decade of warfare following the Sept. 11, 2001 terror attacks, only about 0.5% of the American population has been on active military duty at any given time."
date: "2012-05-23"
authors:
  - name: "Russell Heimlich"
    job_title: "Former web developer"
    link: "https://www.pewresearch.org/staff/russell-heimlich/"
url: "https://www.pewresearch.org/short-reads/2012/05/23/small-share-of-americans-in-active-military-duty/"
---

# Small Share of Americans in Active Military Duty

Asmaller share of Americans currently serve in the U.S. Armed Forces than at any time since the peace-time era between World Wars I and II.

During the past decade, as the military has engaged in the longest period of sustained conflict in the nation’s history, just 0.5% of the American population has served on active duty at any given time. At the height of World War II, the comparable figure was nearly 9%.

And as the size of the military shrinks, the connections between military personnel and the broader civilian population appear to be growing more distant. A look at attitudes among military veterans and the general public shows that 84% of veterans who served after the 9/11 terror attacks say the public does not understand the problems faced by those in the military or their families. The public agrees, though by a less lopsided majority — 71%.

The American public is well aware that the sacrifices the nation was called upon to make following the attacks have not been borne evenly.More than eight-in-ten Americans (83%) say that members of the military and their families have had to make “a lot of sacrifices,” while just 43% say the same about the public as a whole. [Read More](https://www.pewresearch.org/social-trends/2011/10/05/war-and-sacrifice-in-the-post-911-era/)