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Home > Open Access Journals > JSS > Vol. 18 > Afghanistan

 

Author Biography

Alongside a longtime interest in foreign languages and social science, I’ve served in Iraq (via the US Army, including PSYOP) and Afghanistan (via the Human Terrain System, or HTS, under the DoD) in various capacities, with an emphasis on understanding the nuances of culture, people, and how to effectively engage with them. I am currently publishing my third book.

I have a longstanding background in psychological warfare and have focused on insurgency dynamics in and out of warzones and wargame training environments. I specialize in how human behavior can help us decode extremism, disinformation, and civil conflict.

As a language lover, I speak non-native Russian, German, Spanish, Arabic, and to a lesser extent Farsi, French, Italian, and Swahili, and am learning Serbo-Croat, Greek, and Ukrainian.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5038/1944-0472.18.2.2391

Subject Area Keywords

Afghanistan, Asymmetric warfare, Central Asia, Civil affairs, Complex emergencies, Conflict studies, Corruption, Democracy and democatization, Foreign internal defense, Foreign policy, Gangs and criminal organizations, Irregular warfare, Islamic culture and politics, Stability operations

Abstract

This article seeks to show how our successes and overall strategic failing in Afghanistan – in particular, the swift takeover by Taliban forces despite two decades of nation-building and partnering – can be a teachable moment. Specifically, how a more realistic, grounded understanding of human nature and decision making, informed by concepts of human incentives, uncertainty, and risk, can assist us in certain warzones. This understanding may be critical in current and future conflicts where the (1) the formal governing system is ineffective, (2) said government tends to be unresponsive to the needs of lower-level leaders and the population, and (3) the culture lends itself to a stronger framework for localized self-governance and decision making. The author draws on existing military literature, local ABP/VSO outcomes, and insights into human nature and behavior. Broadly, the article fuses the following themes together in a way that is both academically sound and operationally feasible: Afghan culture and human behavior, bottom-up vs top-down governance, tribal engagement and village stability, US Military operational planning and risk assessment methodology (wargaming), and reconciling our approach with realities on the ground for future wars and conflicts.

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