Open research questions in World Wars: History, Literature, and Impact

What the literature leaves open

• The paper identifies a gap in understanding the conscription experience and its effects on different social classes. The study seeks to address this gap by exploring the Napoleonic conscription system.

  NAPOLEONIC CONSCRIPTION: STATE POWER AND CIVIL SOCIETY · 1986 · DOI

• The Russian officer corps was not well understood by the British before 1914. The factors contributing to the low opinion of the Russian officer corps were not well identified.

  Watching the ‘steamroller’: British observers and the Russian army before 1914 · 1985 · DOI

• Further analysis of soldiers' letters and poems could provide deeper insight into their emotions and thoughts. Exploration of the concept of home in the minds of soldiers from different wars and contexts could provide a broader understanding.

  The American Girl and the Christmas Tree: World War II Soldier Poets Look at What the G.I.s Were Fighting For · 1985 · DOI

• Further research could examine the long-term impact of the MOI's propaganda efforts on Britain's colonial image. Further research could analyze the role of propaganda in other colonial contexts.

  Britain's African colonies and British propaganda during the Second World War · 1985 · DOI

• The paper identifies a gap in understanding the role of propaganda in shaping Britain's colonial image during the Second World War. The paper highlights the need to analyze the impact of US anti-imperialism on Britain's colonial policies.

  Britain's African colonies and British propaganda during the Second World War · 1985 · DOI

• There is a lack of understanding about the impact of war propaganda on colonized populations. The experience of Africans in Northern Rhodesia during the Second World War is not well documented.

  WAR PROPAGANDA DURING THE SECOND WORLD WAR IN NORTHERN RHODESIA · 1984 · DOI

• The patterns of migrations derived from the military records may indistinguishably include both pre-Civil War migration and war-related dislocation. The study is exploratory and not exhaustive. The paper highlights the need for further research to verify some of its findings.

  The records of the U.S. colored troops as a historical source: An exploratory examination · 1981 · DOI

• The paper identifies a gap in existing research into the socioeconomics of nineteenth-century Southern Blacks. The study highlights the need for a systematic investigation of the records of U.S. colored troops. The paper notes that these records have not been fully explored in existing research.

  The records of the U.S. colored troops as a historical source: An exploratory examination · 1981 · DOI

• The paper is limited to a critical analysis of LaBarre's study. The paper does not provide a comprehensive analysis of all national character studies. The paper is also limited by its reliance on historical documents.

  A retrospective analysis of a wartime ?national character? study [1] · 1980 · DOI

• Future research should conduct a comprehensive analysis of all national character studies. Future research should also examine the implications of these studies for policymakers and practitioners. Future research should consider the historical context of the studies and the potential biases of the researchers.

  A retrospective analysis of a wartime ?national character? study [1] · 1980 · DOI

• The German colonial question survived the Treaty of Versailles and lingered on till the second world war. The paper identifies a gap in understanding the British attitude towards Germany's colonial irredentism in Africa.

  The British Attitude Towards Germany's Colonial Irredentism in Africa in the Inter-War Years · 1979 · DOI

• The ritual faces challenges in maintaining its relevance and significance in modern times. The ritual faces challenges in balancing its sombre and restrained nature with the need for community engagement and participation.

  Anzac day ritual · 1979 · DOI

• Further research could explore the ritual's impact on community engagement and social cohesion. Further research could examine the ritual's significance in different cultural contexts.

  Anzac day ritual · 1979 · DOI

• Further study of the experiences of minority groups during times of war and conflict. Analysis of the long-term impacts of the Australian government's policies and actions on the local population.

  Loyalties at Sword‐point: The Lutheran Missionaries in Wartime New Guinea, 1939–451 · 1978 · DOI

• The need for a nuanced understanding of the complexities of the situation. The lack of historical analysis of the experiences of Lutheran missionaries in New Guinea during World War II.

  Loyalties at Sword‐point: The Lutheran Missionaries in Wartime New Guinea, 1939–451 · 1978 · DOI

• The war generated needs whose fulfillment strengthened traditional sex roles. The preservation of social order was a high premium during the war. Concern over the increased incidence of juvenile delinquency prompted serious questions about the effects of mothers' employment outside the home.

  Prescriptions for Penelope: Literature on women's obligations to returning World War II veterans · 1978 · DOI

• Further research could explore the long-term outcomes of soldier settlement in Victoria. Further research could compare the experiences of returned soldiers in different states.

  The mapping of ‘soldier settlement’: A note for Victoria, 1917–29 · 1978 · DOI

• There is a lack of analysis on the mapping of soldier settlement in Victoria from 1917-29.

  The mapping of ‘soldier settlement’: A note for Victoria, 1917–29 · 1978 · DOI

• The topic of POW labor in twentieth-century war economies has been relatively neglected in historical research. Prior studies have focused on the military and diplomatic aspects of POWs, neglecting their economic role.

  Prisoners of War in Twentieth-Century War Economies · 1977 · DOI

• The Colonial Office faced challenges in adapting to new circumstances during the war. The office had to balance its role in administering colonial territories with the need to support the war effort.

  ‘Forward thinking’ and war: The colonial office during the 1940s · 1977 · DOI

• The impact of World War II on the Colonial Office's conception of its role is not well understood. The office's experience during the war is not well documented.

  ‘Forward thinking’ and war: The colonial office during the 1940s · 1977 · DOI

• The paper identifies a gap in understanding the empire's security concerns and expansion during this period, - The study highlights the need for further research into the historical context of international relations

  Sir Henry Wilson and the defence of the British Empire, 1918–22 · 1977 · DOI

• The paper identifies a need for a more nuanced understanding of war and its impact on individuals. The survey highlights the importance of considering the complexities of war and its impact on individuals.

  Recent World-War-II fiction: A survey · 1977 · DOI

• The enigma of 'Barbarossa' versus 'Groznyi' has not been entirely satisfactory. Many scholars looked for answers in the purges of the military which reached their climax in 1936-38 but went on until after the beginning of the war.

  Red army doctrine and training on the eve of the second world war · 1975 · DOI

• The secrecy surrounding British involvement in the region's politics - The lack of information about the British Government's use of irregular methods

  Review Essay : Upstairs/Downstairs: British Foreign Policy and Special Operations in Europe 1940-45 · 1975 · DOI

Most-cited papers in World Wars: History, Literature, and Impact

• Happy Soldiers are Highest Performers · Journal of Happiness Studies · 2021 · 33 citations
• Moral Injury, Betrayal and Retribution: Australian Veterans and the Role of Chaplains · Journal of Religion and Health · 2022 · 17 citations
• Propaganda and Combat Motivation: Radio Broadcasts and German Soldiers’ Performance in World War II · World Politics · 2019 · 13 citations
• The liturgy of triumph: victory culture, popular rituals, and the US way of wartiming · International Relations · 2022 · 11 citations
• ‘Every one (re)membered’: Anxiety, family history, and militarised vicarious identity promotion during Britain’s First World War centenary commemorations · Review of International Studies · 2024 · 9 citations
• The Nationalisation of British History: Historians, Nationalism and the Myths of 1940 · The English Historical Review · 2021 · 6 citations
• Belle Epoque in Arms? Armed Associations and Processes of Democratization in Pre-1914 Europe · The Journal of Modern History · 2021 · 6 citations
• Rebuilding the Universities after the Great War: Ex‐Service Students, Scholarships and the Reconstruction of Student Life in England · History · 2020 · 5 citations
• The Concentration Camp as Site of Refuge: The Rise of the Refugee Camp and the Great War in the Middle East · The Journal of Modern History · 2021 · 5 citations
• Alien internment in Britain during the twentieth century: An introduction · Immigrants & Minorities · 1992 · 5 citations

Most recent work

• A @personal narrative of the siege of Lucknow : from its commencement to its relief by Sir Colin Campbell : with a plan of Lucknow and the residency and a portrait of Sir Henry Lawrence · Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin · 2026
• Christ and Captivity in the Second World War: Stanley Warren’s Murals in Changi Camp · Studies in Church History · 2026
• A Revived Calling: The Chaplains of the Brazilian Expeditionary Force during the Second World War · Studies in Church History · 2026
• Depletion and War Shadows · Feminist Economics · 2026
• Prisoner of war letter : [Briefvorlage] · Staatsbibliothek zu Berlin · 2026
• Book review of emigrant soldiers · Immigrants & Minorities · 2026
• Challenges in the commemoration and care of Royal Air Force Second World War dead buried in the United Kingdom, using the case study of Brookwood Military Cemetery · War & Society · 2026
• Shaping the ultra-Orthodox man’s self-image: differentiation, classification, and otherness in poster campaigns against conscription · Journal for Cultural Research · 2026
• Imagining the enhanced soldier: science fiction and the future of the human body in war · Critical Studies on Security · 2026
• The Radical Fifties: Activist Politics in Cold War Britain. Sophie Scott-Brown · Modern British history. · 2026

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