Abbott and Costello Effect: Who's on What, and What's Where When. A Human-Centered Method to Investigate Network Centric Warfare Systems.

摘要

Technological advancements, especially in communications systems, have led to a burgeoning interest in network centric warfare (NCW), fundamentally changing how warfare is being conducted. Network centric warfare (NCW) systems are being rushed to the field and are offered as a solution for the fog of war and as a way to reduce manpower costs. To date, there are no empirical findings that support or refute these NCW system claims. The goal of this thesis was to ascertain the utility of the Geographical Recall and Analysis of Data in the Environment (GRADE) as a method and process by which complex human-technological systems can be assessed. The GRADE builds upon the Dynamic Model of Situated Cognition (DMSC). This study essentially determines if GRADE could be used in model validation in laboratory and field settings for evaluating NCW claims. Unfortunately, that research goal was not entirely realized due to constraints and limitations in the data collection exercise. The thesis discusses the lessons learned from this research effort and makes recommendations about future exercises and how to better populate the DMSC with data. Additional recommendations for changes to the processes and procedures for data collection are provided.