Military Mobilization

Military mobilization involves the assembling and organizing of national military resources — that is, active or reserve forces — to support a nation's defense or strategic objectives. RAND provides civilian and military decisionmakers with critical recommendations on all aspects of defense expenditures to maximize the effectiveness, support, and readiness of a nation's military force.

Research conducted by: RAND Arroyo Center; RAND National Security Research Division; RAND Project AIR FORCE

All Items (34)

REPORT

Army Reserve Units Have High Turnover Prior to Deployment — Aug 8, 2010

When U.S. Army Reserve Component units experience a surge of personnel turbulence as they approach deployment, units must repeat some training, making pre-mobilization preparation less efficient and potentially increasing the extent of training that must be accomplished after mobilization.

RESEARCH BRIEF

Reserve Component Unit Instability: How Big is the Problem, What Causes It, and What Can Be Done About It? — Jul 27, 2010

A study of Army Reserve Component (RC) units finds that personnel instability is widespread, driven mostly by soldier losses and nondeployers, and affects training prior to deployment.

JOURNAL ARTICLE

US Presidential War Powers: Legacy Chains in Military Intervention Decisionmaking — Dec 31, 2007

Using the events leading to the War Powers Resolution of 1973 and its subsequent impact on US military interventions as an empirical example, this article elaborates the notion of 'legacy chains.'

NEWS RELEASE

Most Military Reservists See Earnings Increase When Called to Active Duty — Sep 20, 2006

Most U.S. military reservists see their earnings increase when they are called to active duty, contrary to the common belief that the earnings of reservists fall when they are activated.

NEWS RELEASE

RAND Book Calls All-Volunteer U.S. Military a Success, But Warns Current Wars Pose Challenge to Future Recruiting — Sep 14, 2006

September 14, 2006 News Release: RAND Book Calls All-Volunteer U.S. Military a Success, But Warns Current Wars Pose Challenge to Future Recruiting.

RESEARCH BRIEF

Army Forces for Sustained Operations — Nov 25, 2005

The nation has difficult trade-offs in facing calls on Army forces for operations in Iraq and Afghanistan. This report describes the effects of large deployments on the Army's ability to sustain overseas operations, to provide forces for other contin...

REPORT

Breaking the Mold: A New Paradigm for the Reserve Components — Dec 31, 1999

This Issue Paper argues that these units may not be as ready to deploy as they need to be and offers some observations about why that might be the case.

RESEARCH BRIEF

How Did ODS/S Affect the RC? Evidence from the 1992 Survey — Dec 31, 1998

Such mobilizations are likely to be more frequent in the future and are likely to have important effects on reservists' attitudes and the degree of support they receive from their families and civilian employees.

RESEARCH BRIEF

Postmobilization Training of National Guard Combat Units — Dec 31, 1998

Analyze the process and the resources -- sites, training and support personnel, and opposing forces -- needed to prepare the seven enhanced heavy National Guard brigades for deployment.

RESEARCH BRIEF

Training for an AC-RC Integrated Division — Dec 31, 1998

Evaluate the postmobilization process for the new integrated division. The goal was to tell the Army what additional time and resources are needed to prepare the integrated division for combat.

REPORT

The Effect of Mobilization on Retention of Enlisted Reservists After Operation Desert Shield/Storm — Jan 1, 1998

Discusses how reserve mobilizations affect the attitudes, perceptions, and behaviors of reservists, their families, and their employers.

RESEARCH BRIEF

Did Desert Storm Affect Reserve Component Retention? — Dec 31, 1997

The ODS/S mobilization had only a minor effect on retention and that the things that influence retention are the same ones that have affected it for decades: paygrade, component, individual satisfaction, and the attitudes of spouses.

REPORT

The Reserve Components: Trends and Proposals — Dec 31, 1996

This document provides highlights of a 1997 Department of Defense discussion on the ability of the U.S. armed forces Reserve Components to accommodate a wide range of contingencies, including major combat operations and humanitarian relief.

REPORT

Army Medical Support for Peace Operations and Humanitarian Assistance — Jan 1, 1996

The U.S. military is increasingly being called upon to provide medical support for U.S. forces, coalition forces, and civilian populations in

REPORT

Postmobilization Training Resource Requirements: Army National Guard Heavy Enhanced Brigades — Dec 31, 1995

This report analyzes the training resources needed for future postmobilization training of combat brigades in the Army National Guard.

REPORT

Ensuring Personnel Readiness in the Army Reserve Components — Dec 31, 1995

This project examined the extent of cross-leveling during Desert Shield and Desert Storm, the reasons for it and the likelihood of serious personnel shortfalls in future deployments.

RESEARCH BRIEF

Trends in the Enlisted Reserve — Dec 31, 1995

The call-up of over 240,000 reservists for the Persian Gulf War marked the largest mobilization of the reserves since the Korean War. Although largely successful, the call-up spawned a number of concerns.

REPORT

Aggregation, Disaggregation, and the 3:1 Rules in Ground Combat — Jan 1, 1995

This report illustrates a number of basic principles about aggregation and disaggregation in combat modeling by working through the mathematics and phenomenology of a concrete example. The author also discusses how the 3:1 rule does and does not apply at different levels of combat.

REPORT

Insuring Mobilized Reservists Against Economic Losses: An Overview — Dec 31, 1994

Summarizes results from an ongoing study of the economic losses of reservists upon mobilization and explores one option for addressing this problem, namely, the feasibility of offering insurance protection against such losses.

  • Topic Synonyms:
  • MOB

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