How to Win and Know It: An Effects-Based Approach to Irregular Warfare
Abstract
The United States is entering its seventh year in the Global War on Terrorism and it continues to struggle with irregular warfare. As the Department of Defense's lead for Irregular Warfare (IW), U.S. Special Operations Command co-authored the "Irregular Warfare (IW) Joint Operating Concept (JOC) Version 1.0" with the U.S. Marine Corps Combat Development Command to "outline a holistic U.S. Government and partner nation approach to IW." The concept establishes the need to integrate all instruments of national power to enable a joint force commander to successfully conduct a protracted IW campaign against state and nonstate actors. The end state is a joint force with enhanced capability for IW and a balanced approach to warfighting. To succeed in IW, the commander and his staff need a campaign planning system that answers two primary questions: "How do you effectively focus on controlling or influencing populations?" and "How do you measure your efforts in IW?" The answer may be a "marriage" of effects-based thinking with the concepts outlined in the new IW JOC. This thesis will analyze the potential of such a concept, utilizing a case study of Special Operations Command Pacific's own effects-based approach to the War on Terrorism.
Document Details
- Document Type
- Technical Report
- Publication Date
- Dec 01, 2007
- Accession Number
- ADA476057
Entities
People
- Michael P. Sullivan
Organizations
- Naval Postgraduate School