Military Review English Edition January-February 2015 | Page 88

Overall, confidence and trust were highly dependent
on context; understanding specific variances in places,
people, and situations played a critical role.21

Time
Time emerged as an important theme in the
overall success of building confidence and winning
trust. Activities could lead to a substantial relationship of trust in just a few weeks or in as many as seven
months. Usually, however, forces needed about two
to three months to establish a foundation. If partners
went through an initial period of high enemy activity
together, they would bond more quickly.22 The importance of the time variable is expressed by Maj. Andrew
Bellocchio in his 2011 OLE interview:
You have to live as close as you can to it and
spend as much time as you can with them
[indigenous stakeholders]. It’s also a trust
thing; it builds the trust. They feel you’re not
just reporting on them but they see you’re
trying to help them; you’re with them and
part of the team. That does make a difference.
I think it speeds up the relationship you can
have with them. Just contact time; you have
to live with them and work with them.23
Additionally, because the perception of time often
varies between individuals and cultures, one could
expect the time variable to differ in each situation.
Overall, the findings indicated that soldiers should
dedicate a significant amount of time if they are to
establish a true relationship of trust.24

Confidence-Building Measures
The findings indicated that confidence-building
measures generally fell into three categories: (1) physical, (2) communication, and (3) relationship measures
(see figure 2).25 It is important to note that the boundaries of these categories are flexible. Depending on the
circumstances, their relationships and influences on
each other can vary in unexpected ways.26
Physical measures. Physical confidence-building
measures, activities that demonstrate positive intention, were the most often employed and the most effective. The findings indicated that within the category
of physical measures, the progression from conducting
partnered activities to having the host-nation stakeholders lead the activities was critical, as was helping
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the population meet their basic human needs. One of
the more interesting and unexpected findings was that
soldiers reported participation in sports such as soccer
or other physical training with their partners dramatically increased the trust in the relationship.27 Maj.
Jason Moulton, interviewed for the OLE collection in
2010, describes interaction with the Iraqis:
For me it was very enjoyable; I played soccer
quite a bit on their helipad … . It let them
see that we were just like them; that we
wanted to do the same things they wanted
to do. I wanted to let people who think other
thoughts about the U.S. in general see that
we were on the same page as them. It paid
dividends when you try to actually go talk to
them about doing things and convince them
that they need to approach new avenues on
how to do things. I think it helped a lot.28
Of particular interest was a confidence-building
measure in which soldiers would take an unobtrusive
security posture. The interviews indicated that taking
off body armor or helmets, for instance, or keeping
weapons out of sight, would communicate trust to
other parties.
However, the research subjects were careful to note
that even though a relaxed posture communicates
trust, soldiers need to remain aware of the risks they
take. Soldiers must balance the need for personal force
protection with the need to build confidence and win
trust. This is a difficult dilemma and one where soldiers
must apply their own professional judgment. Overall,
in gaining trust, the research indicated that actions
often speak louder than words.29
Communication measures. Communication measures—activities to exchange information, ideas, and
perspectives—emerged as the next major category. In
a situation where parties in a conflict speak different
languages, measures to build communication are critical, and translators become the lynchpin that holds the
relationship together. The interview ́