Someone did a study
based on an estimate of the ammunition supplied and the numbers killed; it suggested that the vast majority of soldiers on each side was shooting high, or into the ground, or something like that.

I realise that I'm going to get a ton of ^{[citation required]} responses to that: I can't remember where I saw the research, though.
( Enzyme is powered by sunlight, Tue 19 Jan 2010, 16:22, 2 replies, latest was 16 years ago)

I've heard that too
...but I suspect it was on QI.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Tue 19 Jan 2010, 16:30, Reply)

doesn't surprise me
I'm so trigger happy when paintballing or playing computer games that I have no reason to believe I wouldn't be in a real war situation.
( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Tue 19 Jan 2010, 16:33, Reply)

the implication of the study
was that a large proportion of soldiers were deliberately missing because they couldn't face shooting people, I think.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Tue 19 Jan 2010, 16:38, Reply)

it's more likely that they were just shit

( Vipros. clever got me this far, then tricky got me in, Tue 19 Jan 2010, 16:39, Reply)

when you look at today's squaddies
I think your interpretation is fairly watertight.
( Monty Boyce, My cheese game is strong, Tue 19 Jan 2010, 16:47, Reply)

I met some squaddies at Donnington
a few years back. They were surprisingly nice people.

But they were Scottish, so I think that's probably why.
(Bazongaloid, Tue 19 Jan 2010, 16:49, Reply)