Return on Investment: Ensuring Special Forces Can Fight Another Day

摘要

The purpose of this research is to identify possible cultural and policy changes within the Special Forces Regiment that can elongate the operational lifespan of a Special Forces operator through improved physical conditioning and recovery. Since inception, Special Forces Soldiers have conducted operations differently from any other Soldiers or Service Members. These differences are not only in the types of operations or missions themselves, but in frequency, duration, austerity, and level of resources. As Special Forces Soldiers have continued to succeed at the challenges set before them, many have prematurely worn their bodies down and have become less than fully physically capable of continuing in their highly demanding field of work. In the situations in which these exceptional Soldiers are removed from an operational role, their units lose the vast amount of experience that the individual Soldier had, and they need to use additional resources to train a replacement. This thesis argues that improving the Special Forces Regiment's focus on physical readiness through cultural and policy changes can significantly decrease the inevitable losses of Special Forces Soldiers to operational units, and will allow the individual Green Beret to remain at a healthy state throughout his career and beyond.