Skip to page content

National Security and Terrorism

Featured

RAND conducts a broad array of national security research for the U.S. Department of Defense and allied ministries of defense. Our federally funded research and development centers (FFRDCs) explore threat assessment, military acquisition, technology, recruitment and personnel management, counterinsurgency, intelligence, and readiness. RAND is a world leader in terrorism research. Studies address such topics as terrorism financing and strategies to undermine violent extremism.

Report
Arctic Capabilities of the U.S. Armed Forces
The United States has considerable interests in the Arctic and is one of just eight countries with territory in the region. How do U.S. armed forces' capabilities differ from those of other countries operating there, including Russia, China, and allies?
Nov 1, 2023
Commentary
The Israel-Hamas War Has Upended the Terrorist Threat Matrix
Today's terrorist threat matrix seems more like an abstract expressionist painting. To those accustomed to traditional landscapes, it is difficult to discern what it depicts. The fighting in Gaza may well provoke terrorist repercussions beyond the region, the magnitude and shape of which will depend on the course of the conflict.
Nov 22, 2023

Topics in Focus:

Explore National Security and Terrorism

By Category
All Subtopics
All Authors

Journal Article
Entente Versus Alliance: When Should States Be Friends but Not Allies?
This essay examines the conditions under which states choose to adopt formal alliances or instead craft ambiguous relations, commonly known as ententes.
Jun 8, 2023
Journal Article
Competitive Alliances and Civil War Recurrence
Why do internal wars start anew after they apparently end? This essay examines competition between allied rebel groups in civil wars as a contributor to civil war renewal.
Jun 8, 2023
Commentary
The Case for a Governance-First U.S. Security Policy in the Sahel
Both terrorism and coups are on the rise in the Sahel. To reverse this troubling trend, the United States could ramp up support aimed at improving security governance, professionalizing militaries, and strongly sanctioning all forms of military takeovers in the region. This would require a real shift from the current U.S. security approach in the region.
Jun 8, 2023
Commentary
Countries Buy Defective Chinese Military Equipment. Why?
China's defense industry has exported malfunctioning and defective military equipment in recent years—leaving countries short of what's needed for their security while also draining military budgets. So why do countries continue to order military equipment from China?
Jun 8, 2023
Journal Article
Invisible Blockades and Strategic Coercion
The use of naval mines goes back more than two centuries, but the use of these weapons by both Russia and Ukraine has renewed discussion about the value of this technology for modern warfare.
Jun 7, 2023
Journal Article
Not-So-Great Powers: U.S.-China Rivalry in the Neomedieval Age
Counterintuitive as might sound, U.S. decisionmakers should avoid strategies and methods drawn from industrial-age great power competition.
Jun 7, 2023
Report
U.S.-China Rivalry in a Neomedieval World
The neomedieval era, which began around 2000, is characterized by weakening states, fragmenting societies, imbalanced economies, and informalized warfare. What do these conditions mean for competition—and potential conflict—between the United States and China?
Jun 6, 2023
Report
Military-to-Civilian Occupational Matching: Using the O*NET to Provide Match Recommendations for the U.S. Navy, Marine Corps, and Air Force
The authors employ a unique method for military-to-civilian occupational matching by comparing survey data collected from service members in selected military occupations with similar data previously collected for civilian occupations.
Jun 6, 2023
Journal Article
An Unwinnable War: Washington Needs an Endgame in Ukraine
While the Western response to Russia's invasion of Ukraine was clear from the start, the objective has been nebulous. After over a year of fighting, the likely direction of this war is coming into focus.
Jun 6, 2023
Commentary
What Is the Long-Term Strategy for Ukraine's Air Force?
It is encouraging that Ukraine might receive F-16s to improve its combat capabilities. Western policymakers might begin thinking now about what the Ukrainian Air Force may require in the future, especially if the Russian threat remains acute.
Jun 6, 2023
Commentary
U.S.-China Rivalry in an Era of Weakening States
With their weakened state capacity, disengaged publics, and imbalanced economies, the United States and China break the pattern seen in other rivalries between great powers. New theories and ideas will be required to cope with problems largely unknown to the great-power rivals of the recent past.
Jun 6, 2023
Commentary
Amid an Epidemic of Loneliness, Nonprofits Are Helping Keep Veterans Connected
Many nonprofit organizations in the United States seek to support veterans and foster social connection. The connections and sense of community these programs are building can help to combat the loneliness epidemic that is affecting veterans and non-veterans alike.
Jun 5, 2023
Commentary
America Is Winning Against China in Oceania
The United States retains enormous advantages in Oceania and should not be alarmed by China's security activities in the region. Washington should nevertheless keep a close eye on Beijing's moves, particularly against small and weak nations that will struggle to counter Chinese coercive activities on their own.
Jun 4, 2023
Blog
Arming Teachers, F-16s in Ukraine, Commercial Spaceflight: RAND Weekly Recap
This weekly recap focuses on how teachers feel about arming teachers, what F-16s will (and won't) do for Ukraine, the need to regulate commercial spaceflight, and more.
Jun 2, 2023
Journal Article
Geographical Access to Specialized Behavioral Health Treatment Programs for U.S. Active Duty Service Members and Military Families from Military Installations
The purpose of this study is to determine geographical access to specialized behavioral health programs tailored to active duty U.S. service members and military families from military installations.
Jun 1, 2023
Commentary
Designing a New Framework for the U.S. Space Force Workforce
The authors of this Perspective outline a way for the U.S. Space Force to develop its officer workforce that is not tied to the traditional Air Force structure of stovepiped career fields.
Jun 1, 2023
Report
National Guard Youth ChalleNGe: Program Progress in 2021–2022
The National Guard Youth ChalleNGe program serves young people ages 16 to 18 experiencing difficulty in traditional high school. This report covers the program years 2021–2022 and is the seventh in a series on this quasi-military residential program.
Jun 1, 2023
Report
Chinese Next-Generation Psychological Warfare
China is interested in both advanced computing and brain science to expand and improve its psychological warfare capabilities. How might this affect U.S.-China dynamics in peacetime competition, crisis, and conflict?
Jun 1, 2023
Report
Great-Power Competition and Conflict in the Middle East
This report explores the potential for competition among the United States, China, and Russia in the Middle East; where and why competition might turn into conflict; what form that conflict might take; and the implications for the United States.
Jun 1, 2023
Commentary
An Autistic Soldier Wants You to Read This
Despite the recruitment challenges it is currently facing, the Army continues to make personnel decisions based on last century's understanding of neurodivergent diagnoses. The loosening of stigma associated with these diagnoses could improve recruitment, and the Army might reap the benefits of neurodiversity.
Jun 1, 2023

Previous
12
13
14
15
16
17
18
19
20
21
Next

RAND Topic:
National Security and Terrorism

Research conducted by

Researcher Spotlight

Linda Slapakova

Senior Analyst

Linda Slapakova is a senior analyst at the RAND Corporation. Her research focuses chiefly on the defence military and civilian workforce and the Armed Forces community. She also coordinates RAND Europe's body of work focusing on the defence workforce and skills.
Kenneth J. Girardini

Senior Operations Researcher

Kenneth Girardini is a senior operations researcher at the RAND Corporation. He was the director of the Military Logistics Program in the RAND Arroyo Center from 2011 to 2016 and has worked extensively in supply chain management, logistics, and data analytics. Girardini has led projects focusing…

Explore Our People »