Tripwires and free-riders: Do forward-deployed U.S. troops reduce the willingness of host-country citizens to fight for their country?

This article investigates the relationship between U.S. overseas troops and the willingness of the citizens of host states to fight for their country. The study joins the long-running debate about burden-sharing and free-riding among U.S. allies. Unlike most previous empirical studies, we focus on non-material or intangible measures of the underlying concepts. Our dependent variable estimates the proportion of citizens expressing a willingness to fight for their country. Scores at the aggregate-national as well as the individual level are shaped by the presence of U.S. military forces, which act as a “tripwire” signaling credible security commitments. This increases opportunities of (non-material) free-riding. We present both bivariate and multivariate analyses covering the period 1981–2014 to test this supposition. Findings indicate that once U.S. troop levels reach a certain threshold (between 100 and 500 troops), citizens’ willingness to fight drops significantly. This likely reflects non-material free-riding.     

Mirror,mirror on the wall,who is the most offensive of them all? – Explaining the offensive bias in military tactical thinking

This article explores why the offensive predominates military tactical thinking. With survey results showing an offensive bias among 60 per cent of senior Swedish officers and as many as 80 per cent in the case of the army, it is clear that this is not just a problem of the past but is equally relevant today. The article asks why there is a tendency to perceive and understand offensive tactics as the preferred choice and the way to conduct battle that should be encouraged and preferred. Drawing on existing research and the findings of a pilot study, ten propositions for why the offensive bias exists are tested using a mixed-method approach. Based on the findings, the article develops a model to understand why the offensive dominates military tactical thinking. It is found that the two key constitutive factors behind the offensive bias are military culture and education. These factors most directly and profoundly influence an officer’s identity, perceptions, and thinking. Military culture and education, in turn, work as a prism for four other factors: military history, the theory and principles of war, doctrine and TTPs, and psychological factors.     

Moving the techno-science gap in Security Force Assistance

This paper looks at the impact of military technology diffusion on military assistance operations (MAO), in the United States known as Security Force Assistance or SFA. The discussion looks conceptually at the role of technological change and how it interacts with martial cultures in military assistant operations. I argue that growing trends in science and technology suggest potential conflicts between culture and technology. Relying on a culture-technology model drawn from anthropology, the paper contends that new technologies will present increasing challenges for the emerging MAO landscape. The paper will illustrate that the techno-science gap will continue to grow as innovations such as robotics, sensors, and networks continue to develop. Finally, the paper will look at ways to overcome this conflict between culture and technology.     

Late Medieval Lance Use: Mounted Combat and Martial Arts in Western Europe from the 14th to the 16th Century

Despite the lance’s status and the amount of attention the couched lance has received in historiography, study of its martial art has been neglected. The various lance types and techniques used by western European cavalry have only recently begun to receive scholarly attention. Additionally, Medieval European lance use has too often been studied in isolation, without an adequate understanding of the idiosyncratic and asymmetrical dynamics of mounted combat. Although the charge with the couched lance was a valid tactic, it was only one of many. Light and heavy lances were used in one hand or two to trip, block, unhorse, and wrestle. These techniques were governed by the harsh laws of distance, speed, impact, iron, and asymmetry. By utilizing the surviving Fechtbücher and several Peninsular and Near Eastern sources, a brief foray into the diverse techniques of lance use and their purposes has been attempted here.     

重塑军队作战力量体系的几点思考

作战力量体系是一个国家军事力量体系的核心组成部分。近些年通过深化国防和军队改革,我军军事力量体系宏观上发生了脱胎换骨的变化,接下来到了对作战力量体系进行重塑的攻坚阶段,本文结合当前作战力量体系发展的一些特点和建设存在的短板,提出了重塑我军作战力量体系的决策建议。      

浅谈军校学员的心理素质教育

军校学员心理健康状况不容乐观,把心理素质教育纳入军校德育等领域已形成一定的共识.应注意结合学员身心实际及职业要求,重视探讨和研究心理素质教育的内容、途径和方法等.     

从装备思维与军事实践互动关系看装备科研工作内涵、地位与作用

装备思维是人类智慧的结晶和科技文明产物,它反映一定时期人们对于装备设计的理念,也反映了该时期主流军事战略的思维方式。本文对军事装备涉及的论证、研制、试验、鉴定和使用等环节进行梳理,从装备思维与实践互动关系探讨装备科研工作的内涵、地位和作用。     

论我国地方国家机关的军事立法权

我国地方国家机关享有国防职权和立法权,有权就国防事务制定地方性军事法规和地方性军事规章。地方国家机关的军事立法权既有法律依据,也有存在的必要性。但地方军事立法的内容是有限的,不应涉及军事行动和军队管理事项。     

军事立法技术新解

军事立法技术是军事立法学和军事立法实践的基本要素之一,而军事立法技术的基本问题,则是军事立法技术研究的逻辑起点。从军事立法技术的概念、与一般立法技术的关系、运用的基本原则等方面,对军事立法技术进行简要分析。     

军内行政执法主体研究

军内行政执法主体是指依法享有军内行政执法权的组织。但是,在理论上如何界定军内行政执法主体的范围？军内行政执法主体之间的相互关系如何界定？军内行政执法主体之间的职权在宏观上如何划分？这便是本文所要探讨的问题。