Security and Defense Research

The RAND Corporation helped create the field of defense analysis after World War II. Modern researchers at RAND, including Pardee RAND students, carry on this tradition. Common topic areas include strategy and policy, technology and acquisition, logistics, and personnel. Students doing research in this area employ diverse methods: modeling and simulation, wargaming, archival research, econometric analysis, and more. In recent years, roughly forty percent of students’ project work (OJT) has been related to defense and security.

Student-Faculty Research Collaborations

Through project-based research and other OJT and experiential learning opportunities, students work with faculty mentors to obtain professional skills and tacit knowledge that courses alone cannot convey. Here are a few recent projects and their resulting research.

  • A man in civilian clothes and a man in uniform are shown positions by a female yoga instructor

    Predictors of PTSD Treatment Retention and Response

    Sangita Baxi (cohort '17), Christine Chen ('15), Meghan Franco ('17), Mahlet Gizaw ('17), and Nima Shahidinia ('16) worked with Profs. Margaret Maglione and Susanne Hempel to identify baseline patient characteristics and program features associated with military PTSD treatment retention, response, and remission

  • Electricianas Mate 3rd Class Malachy Osikwemhe repairs a dimmer switch on the missile deck of the guided-missile destroyer USS Mason (DDG 87). Mason is deployed as part of the Harry S. Truman Carrier Strike Group supporting maritime security operations and theater security cooperation efforts in the U.S. 5th Fleet area of responsibility, photo by Mass Communication Specialist 2nd Class Rob Aylward/U.S. Navy

    Developing Strategic Plans for Defense Human Resource Management

    Although leaders of many organizations appreciate the value of strategic planning, they wrestle with the principles that should be used to guide a planning process. Nathan Thompson (cohort '20) and Prof. Charles Goldman colleagues explore what principles should guide the development and implementation of strategic plans in defense human resource management organizations.

Explore Pardee RAND student-authored research on Security and Defense »

Faculty Mentors

View all Security and Defence faculty

Related Dissertations

View all Pardee RAND dissertations