MISC 501 Research Doctrine & Leadership

Students will learn advanced and effective approaches to these subjects through careful consideration of variables of the operational environment, deeper understandings of near peer competitors (China and Russia) and non-state actors (Iran, North Korea, and others), application of case studies, and exercising practical communication techniques in order to make a more effective security practioner and scholar.

Textbook readings and lecture presentations

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Course Requirements Checklist

After reading the Course Syllabus and Student Expectations, the student will complete the related checklist found in the Course Overview.

Discussions (7)

The student will complete seven discussions in this course. The student will post one thread of at least 350 words (at least 350 words for the Peer-Review Discussion) and then the student must post 2 replies of at least 100 words. For each thread, students must support their assessments by utilizing at least two of the four information streams: scholarly, practitioner, adversary literature and documents, and population perceptions (human domain). News articles and other sources can be used judiciously.  Make sure to use citations in current APA format. Each reply should incorporate at least 1 quality source cited in current APA format in order to keep the discussions focused on quality analysis rather than conjecture.

Near-Peer Competitor: Research Proposal Assignment

The purpose of this assignment is to foster the critical security skills of relevancy, research (information) organization and structure, and purposeful, high-quality research design. The objective is to understand, optimize, and formulate an effective structure for assessing a relevant security issue related to the People’s Republic of China or Russia (Near-Peer Competitors). 

Video Brief

After studying your assigned reading, David Hollis, “Cyberwar Case Study: Georgia 2008,” Small Wars Journal, and additional sources the student may want to add for depth of understanding, provide a video brief between 10-15 minutes answering critical information requirements noted below. The video brief must demonstrate the communication qualities and specifications for security research professionals noted in class.

Book Review Assignment

The student will write a book review for this class in order to more deeply understand and assess military leadership, a critical component of the outcomes of this course. In the book review, the student needs to both identify the author’s thesis as well as evaluate how effectively the author supports it by using specific examples from throughout the book. The student must use footnotes in current Turabian formatting when citing your examples. Please consult Turabian Quick Guide under Writing Style Guides in the Course Menu for expectations.

Near-Peer Competitor: Research Paper Assignment

Students will write a research paper of 12–15 pages, exclusive of the cover page and bibliography. The final paper should be suitable for presentation at a scholarly conference. The paper must have and develop a clearly-stated thesis. Make sure your thesis is not just a general statement of intent: i.e., “In this paper I will discuss the rise of Adolf Hitler.”