RAND Army Research Division

Latest Research

  • Silhouette of soldiers with military vehicles, photo by veneratio/Adobe Stock

    What Makes U.S. Military Interventions Successful?

    Apr 1, 2019

    An analysis of 145 U.S. military interventions identifies the factors that have made them more or less successful at achieving their political objectives. They were successful 63 percent of the time, but levels of success have declined over time as the United States has pursued more ambitious goals. Before intervening, planners should carefully match strategy with political objectives.

  • Competitors prepare to fire during the 2015 Civilian Marksmanship Program National Trophy Pistol Matches in Camp Perry, Ohio, photo by Sgt. 1st Class Raymond J. Piper/U.S. Army

    An Evaluation of the Corporation for the Promotion of Rifle Practice and Firearms Safety

    Feb 25, 2019

    The Civilian Marksmanship Program (CMP) began in 1903 with the goal of encouraging individuals to develop marksmanship skills in case they were called to serve during wartime. Overall, CMP benefits the Army receives from CMP likely outweigh its the funds and resources the Army provides the program.

  • A map depicting Russian influence over Europe

    How to Counter Russia's Hostile Measures in Europe

    Jan 28, 2019

    Russia has a range of tools and methods short of conventional war that it can use to achieve its goals in Europe. There is no way to predict what Russia will do, but it's possible to analyze its motives and opportunities, the means it might employ, and how the United States should respond.

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Latest Commentary

  • Members of the Virgin Islands National Guard hand out food and water to civilians at a distribution point on St. Croix after Hurricane Irma, September 22, 2017

    Arroyo Researchers Visit Puerto Rico After Hurricane Maria

    Dec 19, 2017

    A small team of researchers from RAND Arroyo Center went to Puerto Rico two weeks after the island was struck by Hurricane Maria. They are compiling their observations into a series of studies for the Army, with recommendations to smooth its response to future disasters.

  • U.S. Army paratroopers jump from a C-17 Globemaster III over the Juliet Drop Zone in Pordenone, Italy, June 12, 2013

    Reimagining and Modernizing U.S. Airborne Forces for the 21st Century

    Apr 20, 2016

    Many of the challenges the U.S. will face in the coming years across the range of military operations could be deep inland and require rapid response. Airborne forcible entry — with reimagined and modernized airborne forces — would offer decisionmakers options in crises that they do not possess today.

  • Syrian army soldiers inspect the site of a two bomb blasts in the government-controlled city of Homs, Syria, on February 21, 2016

    A New Kind of Battlefield Awaits the U.S. Military — Megacities

    Apr 6, 2016

    Megacities are urban areas that seep into one another and have more than 10 million inhabitants. To counter violent non-state actors operating in megacities in the future, the U.S. military will have to be able to piece together a comprehensive and actionable intelligence picture, and under enormously challenging circumstances.

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