Social Science of War

By West Point Department of Social Sciences

What's Social Science of War about?

A production of the Department of Social Sciences at the United States Military Academy, the Social Science of War podcast brings together leading research and practitioner perspective to tackle some of the biggest challenges facing the US Army.

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Social Science of War episodes:

06.18.2024
The Harding Project and Army Professional Writing
Last September, the Harding Project launched with the objective of renewing professional writing in the US Army. A priority of General Randy George, the Army chief of staff, the project is built on the premise that professional discourse will produce...
06.06.2024
Public Opinion and the Use of Force
Every four years, Americans choose a new commander-in-chief. US presidents have significant authority to use force, manage a global network of alliances and partnerships, as well as direct American grand strategy. How do voters decide who they want to be...
05.21.2024
Learning from Iraq
After the US-led coalition's invasion of Iraq and defeat of Iraqi forces in conventional operations, a series of new challenges arose. How can security forces be rebuilt and strengthened, for example, and how can peace and governance be restored? This...
05.07.2024
Iraq in Retrospect, Twenty Years Later
More than twenty-one years ago, when a US-led coalition invaded Iraq, the 101st Airborne Division was a key element of the operation. Dr. Isaiah "Ike" Wilson was an Army officer and the division's chief of plans. He later authored a...
04.22.2024
Technology and the Future of Land Warfare
Technology is rapidly changing the modern battlefield, making it crucial for armies to adapt how they think, fight, and train. But what should that adaptation look like? How can the US Army, for example, evolve at the tactical level to...
04.08.2024
Americans’ Changing Views of Civil-Military Relations
Are current trends in civil-military relations antithetical to healthy democratic norms? What can be done to ensure the civil-military relationship is a healthy one? And most fundamentally, how are Americans' views of the proper delineation of civilian and military authority...
03.25.2024
Why Defense Reform in Ukraine is Crucial
Most discussions about Western support to Ukraine and its defense against Russia centers on materiel—artillery shells, F-16s, and a wide range of equipment. While these weapons and systems are crucial for Ukraine to continue its war effort, there is an...
03.11.2024
Drone Proliferation to Terrorists Proxies
How is increased nonstate actor access to drones impacting war today? That deeply challenging question is the focus of the first episode in the new season of Social Science of War. As always, the podcast sets out to bring together...
04.17.2023
Civil-Military Relations and Partisanship in the Armed Forces
Since Samuel Huntington introduce the concept of objective control in his 1957 book The Soldier and the State, it has been the model of civil-military relations taught most widely in US professional military education. And yet the concept is not...
04.03.2023
Adapting the Army to Strategic Competition
The US military and those of its allies are faced with the challenges of shifting focus toward great power competition while still maintaining the ability to counter threats on the fringes. Where does the Army fit in this new strategic landscape?...
03.20.2023
Land Warfare in Europe, Part 2: Large-Scale Combat Operations in Ukraine
In the previous episode of the Social Science of War, our guests explored the strategic and political dynamics of NATO. This episode continues the focus on European security, turning specifically to the tactical and operational lessons on display in the war...
03.06.2023
Land Warfare in Europe, Part 1: The Politics of Coalition Warfare
How would the United States and its NATO allies fight together in a great power war? How does burden sharing between NATO members shape alliance dynamics? And what lessons can NATO learn from the ongoing war in Ukraine? In this...
02.20.2023
Theory and Practice of Proxy Warfare in Strategic Competition
This episode tackles the subject of proxy warfare—specifically its role in a strategic environment characterized by great power competition. Why do states engage in proxy warfare? How does what scholars call principal-agent theory explain the way proxy warfare actually plays...
02.06.2023
Shaping in Strategic Competition: How to Win Friends and Influence People with Military Power
This episode examines the role of military power not only to fight wars but also to attract and influence partners and allies. Known as shaping, these activities include multinational training exercises with foreign militaries, establishing US military basing around the...
01.23.2023
The War That Shall Not Be Named: Lessons from Afghanistan for the Army
This episode looks back at twenty years of the US-led war in Afghanistan to find lessons for the US Army. How should the war inform the way we make strategy going forward? What are the keys to effective security force...
01.09.2023
Army Service and Talent Management in the All-Volunteer Era
This episode of Social Science of War examines a range of issues related to Army talent management—from the ways in which service in the Army impacts a soldier’s earning potential to how the Army is responding to its current recruiting crisis....
12.26.2022
Persistent, Deniable, Defensive: Cyber Operations and the Army
This episode of the Social Science of War podcast examines the challenges posed by cyber threats to the United States and how the nation and Army are adapting to the cyber domain. To do so, host Kyle Atwell is joined...
12.13.2022
Welcome to the Social Science of War: Lessons from Ukraine for the Army
This is the very first episode of a new podcast from the Department of Social Sciences at West Point: Social Science of War. In it, host Kyle Atwell is joined by retired Lieutenant General Mark Hertling, former commanding general of...

What's Social Science of War about?

Download our free app to listen on your phone

Social Science of War episodes:

The Harding Project and Army Professional Writing

Public Opinion and the Use of Force

Learning from Iraq

Iraq in Retrospect, Twenty Years Later

Technology and the Future of Land Warfare

Americans’ Changing Views of Civil-Military Relations

Why Defense Reform in Ukraine is Crucial

Drone Proliferation to Terrorists Proxies

Civil-Military Relations and Partisanship in the Armed Forces

Adapting the Army to Strategic Competition

Land Warfare in Europe, Part 2: Large-Scale Combat Operations in Ukraine

Land Warfare in Europe, Part 1: The Politics of Coalition Warfare

Theory and Practice of Proxy Warfare in Strategic Competition

Shaping in Strategic Competition: How to Win Friends and Influence People with Military Power

The War That Shall Not Be Named: Lessons from Afghanistan for the Army

Army Service and Talent Management in the All-Volunteer Era

Persistent, Deniable, Defensive: Cyber Operations and the Army

Welcome to the Social Science of War: Lessons from Ukraine for the Army

Other shows like Social Science of War: