Hall, Robert Anthony (Bob); 8 Battalion The Royal Australian Regiment

Collection consists of 115 questionnaires completed by servicemen who served with 8 Battalion, The Royal Australian Regiment (8RAR) during the Vietnam War. The questionnaires were collected by Mr Robert 'Bob' Hall for his 8RAR History Project. Mr Hall also served with 8RAR in Vietnam during 1969 and 1970.

The questionnaires contain 84 questions and are divided into 8 parts, with two sections named ‘part 6’.
Part 1 gathers biographical details including name, national service status, enlistment dates, and religion.
Part 2 questions the respondents' opinions before departure to Vietnam and includes questions on education, political preferences, knowledge of the war, and anti-war activities.
Part 3 contains questions on contact with the enemy and includes questions about contact operations, casualties, woundings, cordon and search operations, enemy weapons, weapons effectiveness, mateship, types of attack, psychological injuries, concentration during operations, importance of battalion or section, fear and coping, and local people.
Part 4, "Another side", focuses on the behaviour of Australian soldiers and incidents which occurred during their tour in Vietnam. It includes questions on friendly fire, accidental discharges, accusations of Australian troops committing atrocities, atrocities committed by the enemy, and the treatment of enemy dead, POW and wounded.
Part 5 focuses on leadership and includes questions on how certain ranks performed as leaders, communication to groups or individuals, and examples of good or poor leadership.
Part 6, "Odds and ends", includes questions on health, diseases contracted in Vietnam, the handling of psychological causalities, and drug usage, sexual activity and offences committed during their tour in Vietnam.
Part 6 focuses on their life after the war and includes questions regarding “Post Traumatic Shock Syndrome”, Agent Orange and other chemical sprays, families and civilian friends' reaction to their service in Vietnam, changes to religious and political beliefs, employment, marital status, the morality of Australia’s involvement, anti-war movement, government policy since returning, success of army operations in Vietnam, and membership of the Vietnam Veterans Association of Australia or RSL.
Part 7, "Other information", asks about photos, diaries, letters, or other documents relevant to their service, and invites further comment.

A supplementary questionnaire for platoon and company commanders has an additional 14 questions on topics such as soldier training, differences between Regular Army and National Service soldiers, tactical innovations, medical evacuation and treatment, fire support for 8RAR, cooperation between 8RAR and the Allies, preparation for leadership, opinion on whether Vietnam was an unwinnable or dirty war, and differences in leadership between Australian and United States battalions.

Participants could choose to have their questionnaire donated to the Australian War Memorial or destroyed. The questionnaires were originally numbered which indicates how many were destroyed.

The collection consists of 9 wallets containing survey responses.
Wallet 1 of 9 contains 2 folders of responses from servicemen with last names ranging from A to B. Folder 1 contains 5 questionnaires; folder 2 contains 4 questionnaires.
Wallet 2 of 9 contains 2 folders of responses from servicemen with last names ranging from C to D. Folder 1 contains 7 questionnaires; folder 2 contains 4 questionnaires.
Wallet 3 of 9 contains 2 folders of responses from servicemen with last names ranging from E to F. Folder 1 contain 5 items including questionnaires and photos; folder 2 contains 5 questionnaires.
Wallet 4 of 9 contains 2 folders of responses from servicemen with last names beginning with H. Folder 1 contains 6 questionnaires; folder 2 contains 9 questionnaires.
Wallet 5 of 9 contains 2 folders of responses from servicemen with last names ranging from I to K. Folder 1 contains 7 questionnaires; folder 2 contains 5 questionnaires.
Wallet 6 of 9 contains 3 folders of responses from servicemen with last names ranging from L to M. Folder 1 contains 8 questionnaires; folder 2 contains 7 questionnaires. Folder 3 contains 4 questionnaires.
Wallet 7 of 9 contains 2 folders of responses from servicemen with last names ranging from N to P. Folder 1 contains 5 questionnaires; folder 2 contains 7 questionnaires.
Wallet 8 of 9 contains 2 folders. These folders contain survey responses from servicemen with last names ranging from R to S. Folder 1 contains 6 questionnaires. Folder 2 contains 8 questionnaires.
Wallet 9 of 9 contains 2 folders of responses from servicemen with last names ranging from T to W. Folder 1 contains 5 questionnaires; folder 2 contains 8 questionnaires.