Strategic Psychological Operations Capability Development: Why is it Taking so Long?

Abstract

This research project explores causes and effects of the events that led to the repeated failed efforts to develop a Strategic Psychological Operations (PSYOP) Capability. Multiple efforts to materialize the proposed capability development failed as they were initially outlined in the 1985 PSYOP Master Plan, in the 1990 revised PSYOP Master Plan, and in numerous subsequent research findings. Government officials recognized challenges from the changing geopolitical conditions and the importance of dominating the information domain but failed to promptly develop the capability needed to meet the new challenges. The renewed national security policies, which focused on the near-peer competition followed by countering violent extremist organizations, demanded the need to fill the missing capability gap, but the efforts to develop a strategic PSYOP capability stalled, which this thesis addresses.

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Document Details

Document Type
Technical Report
Publication Date
Dec 01, 2020
Accession Number
AD1126976

Entities

People

  • Seon Lee

Organizations

  • Naval Postgraduate School

Tags

Communities of Interest

  • Energy and Power Technologies
  • Weapons Technologies

DTIC Thesaurus Topics

  • Contingency Operations (Military)
  • Department Of Defense
  • Department Of State
  • Disinformation Operations
  • Governments
  • Information Operations
  • Information Warfare
  • Interagency Coordination
  • Military Applications
  • Military Operations
  • Military Organizations
  • National Politics
  • National Security
  • Political Science
  • Political Systems
  • Propaganda
  • Psychological Operations
  • Public Administration
  • Social Media
  • Terrorism
  • Terrorists
  • United States
  • United States Government
  • War Colleges
  • Warfare

Readers

  • Irregular Warfare and Special Operations Cyberspace Operations against Adversarial Threats.
  • Strategic Security Studies