Recent Articles

A Reference Guide for Interpreting Statistics and Creating Survey Questions Hai Do, Doctor Karen J. Finkenbinder PKSOI Paper by the US Army War College, Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute, US Army War College Press "The guide is designed for one that is not enamored with statistics but needs to know enough to accurately interpret an academic article or other statistical information. Further, it includes a brief “how to” section on designing survey questions. For some, this information will be just a review; for others, it will be new information. Regardless of which camp you are in, we hope you find it useful."

Sharing Power? Prospects for a U.S. Concert-Balance Strategy Dr Patrick Porter Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "Grand strategy is an important subject. It is about the dialectical relationship between power and commitments, ends, and means. Grand strategy concerns not only the alignment of resources with goals, but how to conceive those goals in the first place. At root, it is about the identity of the security community. What kind of country does it want to be, and what kind of country does it have the power to be?"

Making Strategic Sense of Cyber Power: Why the Sky Is Not Falling Dr Colin S Gray Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "Generically viewed, the challenge that cyber power poses to our understanding is a familiar one. After all, within living memory (just about) we have had to try and make sense of air power, and then, a generation later, of nuclear weapons and their possible delivery by ballistic missiles. What unites our experience with air power, nuclear weapons, and now cyber, is the authority of strategic explanation conveyed in the general theory of strategy—Carl von Clausewitz’s rules, even though he was ignorant of hydrogen fusion weapons and of networked digital compute."

Egypt's New Regime and the Future of the U.S.-Egyptian Strategic Relationship Mr Gregory Aftandilian Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "This monograph, completed in August 2012, analyzes the developments in Egypt from January 2011 to August 2012 and addresses the following questions that are pertinent to U.S. policymakers: How does the United States maintain good relations and preserve its strategic partnership with Egypt under Cairo’s new political leadership and the changing political environment in the country? How does it do so while adhering to American values such as supporting democracy even when those coming to power do not share U.S. strategic goals? The monograph first examines Egypt’s strategic importance for the United States by exploring Egypt’s role in the Arab-Israeli peace process, its geographical role (providing air and naval access) for U.S. military assets heading to the Persian Gulf, and joint training programs. With so much at stake in the Middle East, “losing” Egypt as a strategic ally would be a significant setback for the United States."

Governance, Identity, and Counterinsurgency: Evidence from Ramadi and Tal Afar Dr Michael Fitzsimmons Monograph by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "The premise of most Western thinking on counterinsurgency is that success depends on establishing a perception of legitimacy among local populations. The path to legitimacy is often seen as the improvement of governance in the form of effective and efficient administration of government and public services. However, good governance is not the only possible basis for claims to legitimacy. This monograph considers whether, in insurgencies where ethno-religious identities are politically salient, claims to legitimacy may rest more on the identity of who governs, rather than on how those people govern..."

Strategic Stability: Contending Interpretations Mr. Elbridge A Colby, Mr. Michael S Gerson Book by the US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press

Talking Past Each Other? How Views of U.S. Power Vary between U.S. and International Military Personnel COL Richard H M Outzen Letort Paper by US Army War College, Strategic Studies Institute, US Army War College Press "This Paper addresses the question of whether anecdotally observed friction between U.S. military personnel and their international partners stems from underlying bias or other factors that cannot be practically remedied. After providing a backdrop of the types of friction that have been observed, and that seem to be escalating, the Paper examines alternative theoretical explanations for such friction. The friction mirrors, in a sense, the broader sharpening of anti-U.S. sentiment observed throughout much of the globe over the past decade. There are two broad explanatory approaches: the friction and sentiment stem from who we are and are thus immutable; or they stem from discrete actions and policies, and thus may be ameliorated to some degree."

Peace & Stability Journal, Volume 3, Issue 2 Mister Robert C Browne Peace and Stability Journal by the US Army War College, Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute "The Joint communities need to clearly articulate the practice and integration of stability operations in order for the Army to optimize efficiencies in applying the war-fighting functions across the range of military operations (ROMO) in support of Unified Action. Specifically, stability operations, as part of the Army’s decisive action, lack the clarity of a definitive relationship within the mosaic of building partner capacity, security cooperation, irregular warfare, counterinsurgency, security assistance, security force assistance and foreign internal defense."

SOLLIMS Sampler - Protection of Civilians Mister David A Mosinski PKSOI SOLLIMS Sampler by the US Army War College, Peacekeeping and Stability Operations Institute "Civilian protection efforts have gained considerable momentum over the course of recent peacekeeping and stability operations. United Nations and African Union peacekeeping forces engaged in missions across Africa, as well as the International Security Assistance Force working to bring stability to Afghanistan, have recognized more and more the importance of civilian protection efforts. Accordingly, these international organizations and international forces have implemented an array of new policies, programs, strategies, and tactics for the sole purpose of improving civilian protection and reducing civilian casualties."