Improving U.S. Army Civil Affairs Assessment: A Consideration of Social Power
Abstract
The U.S. Army has a need to shape the operational environments of its mission, whether they require offensive, defensive, or stability operations. Current Army Civil Affairs doctrine fails to take into account the workings of social power, and thus it limits the Army's complete understanding of an operational environment. In its mission planning, the Army needs to take into account all aspects of power, not just the visible forms. This work explains the concept of social power and discusses frameworks for implementing its con-text- and conduct-shaping aspects in operational planning. By incorporating social power analysis into its operational planning, Army Civil Affairs will be able to develop doctrine that will improve its understanding of the operational environment. In turn, the military's ability to identify centers of gravity for influencing social change will be improved, and the likelihood of unintended consequences occurring from armed interventions will be lessened.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2017
- Accession Number
- AD1049313
Entities
People
- George W. Calfas
- Judith M. Vendrzyk
- Lucy A. Whalley