Is there a certain psychology behind the way Rank Insignia looks between services?

Capt Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 02 Apr 2015 09:43:57 -0400

In my years of seeing the different types of enlisted ranks amongst the services, I often wondered of there is a trigger, a mental recognition, or a certain perception that changes between the way Enlisted Rank Insignia looks, and how people think of that rank.

This has come up for me because of how the USAF went from the Army rank insignia to what it is today. To me, the E-6 rank in particular looks tougher, more respectful and shows a sense of growth in ranks far better than the USAF E-6 rank.

I think this goes a long way for junior ranking enlisted. I know when I saw a Marine or an Army E-6 I always thought it looked better. I just put on E-6, yes it still means something different but the look is not different than the E-5 like it is in Army or Marines. Share your thoughts.

Response by SFC Michael Hasbun made Apr 2 at 2015 9:46 AM

SFC Michael Hasbun — Thu, 02 Apr 2015 09:46:19 -0400

Naval and Army insignia are based off of French and British variants, which predate and inspired ours. The Air Force is brand new, comparatively, so they just went for a blue motif that was different looking than everyone elses, and they sure succeeded...

Response by MSgt Michael Durkee made Apr 2 at 2015 9:56 AM

MSgt Michael Durkee — Thu, 02 Apr 2015 09:56:26 -0400

The Air Force did improve upon the Top 3 Enlisted ranks by switching to rockers over the top of the five base chevrons. Before they did that I remember how difficult it was at times to decipher a MSgt from a TSgt at a distance.

Then again, during my career there were a lot of changes...to include the elimination of Sgt and the coloring in of the star for all junior ranks.

Response by CCMSgt Private RallyPoint Member made Apr 2 at 2015 10:34 AM

CCMSgt Private RallyPoint Member — Thu, 02 Apr 2015 10:34:55 -0400

"This has come up for me because of how the USAF went from the Army rank insignia to what it is today. To me, the E-6 rank in particular looks tougher, more respectful and shows a sense of growth in ranks far better than the USAF E-6 rank."

Honestly, I think this may be more inter-service bias more than anything. I come from a family of Marines back to WWI...I am outlier. Most of them made it to Gunnery Sergeant or Staff Sergeant ( I guess I showed them...). I don't see much of a difference between the knowledge level of any E-6 in any service. But, the Marines treat their E-6's with a hell of a lot more respect than any other service. They are Staff NCOs and the first rank of what we call Senior NCO.

So, from my experience, even though you have the same rank chevrons from Army and Marines...I think the Marine has more responsibility and the potential for more respect.

From the Air Force perspective, the Technical Sergeant is supposed to be the top of their game with respect to technical job qualifications. As soon as you his MSgt, they start removing you from the technical job.

Response by Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS made Apr 2 at 2015 11:02 AM

Sgt Aaron Kennedy, MS — Thu, 02 Apr 2015 11:02:20 -0400

There actually is some psychological advantages between the different services insignia.

The two big ones are Size & Color, followed by position of placement.

On color, Red is generally a more "aggressive" color, and has been shown to make someone "more attractive" than wearing alternate colors. The USMC Red Background makes it standout on both of our uniforms (Dress/Service) and also makes the Chevrons appear larger. It's more of an optical illusion than anything. Compare this to the other services, notably the USAF, and you get a "bleed" effect, which actually makes their chevrons appear smaller. until you get rockers.

Additionally, the USMC has one additional Rocker for E9 (3 up, 4 down) compared to Army (3 up, 3 down), which actually makes them physically larger for upper ranks.

Finally is a matter of placement. Ours are set from Shoulder seem 4" until E7, then 3". I "believe" the army is centered from elbow to shoulder (please don't quote me). This changes the way we perceive them.

When we get to the Navy side, they tend to suffer from all of the effects, AND they only wear Chevrons on one sleeve, not centered.

Response by SMSgt Lawrence McCarter made Dec 30 at 2018 11:24 PM

SMSgt Lawrence McCarter — Sun, 30 Dec 2018 23:24:54 -0500

Perhaps not the criteria, but Navy and Coast Guard with Chevrons pointing down such as the hull of a ship. Army and Marines up such as the top of a tent while out in the field. Air Force, winglike (like a bird ) chevrons to represent the flying service.