Special Operations Research Topics 2016: Future Technologies, Achieving National Security Objectives, Unconventional Warfare, Africa, Disrupting Foreign Fighter Flow, War by Proxy, SOF Suicides

Professionally converted for accurate flowing-text e-book format reproduction, this publication highlights a wide range of topics collaboratively developed and prioritized by experts from across the Special Operations Forces (SOF) community. The topics in these pages are intended to guide research projects for professional military education (PME) students, JSOU faculty, fellows, students, and others writing about special operations during this academic year.

JSOU executes the joint education mission of United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM) and is a globally recognized academic institution that serves the entire Department of Defense and advances the SOF community's intellectual readiness. This research will provide a better understanding of the complex issues and opportunities affecting the strategic and operational planning needs of SOF.

As the USSOCOM Commander has stated, "The value of our people and our unique capabilities are exponentially improved with better education, ideas, concepts, and situational understanding." These topics will stir creativity and critical thinking among the best and brightest in our SOF network to generate new ideas. These new ideas formed after careful research and analysis will lead to the development of innovative solutions for the most pressing issues and concerns that face our community.

Topics are organized to address the five SOF priorities as identified by the USSOCOM Commander. To develop this list of topics, recommendations were solicited from the USSOCOM headquarters staff, the theater special operations commands (TSOCs), component commands, SOF chairs from the war colleges, select research centers, and think tanks. Then the attendees reviewed, revised, rated, and ranked the topic submissions at the annual Special Operations Research Topics Workshop. That workshop produced the first draft of this comprehensive list of issues and challenges of concern to the greater SOF community. The list was reviewed and vetted by the headquarters, TSOCs, and component commands prior to publication.