A Symmetric Adaptive Model of Combat

ABSTRACT

Analytical models are used to examine theories of military combat, a violent conflict between two groups. Typically these models focus on combat power (manpower and technology) and ignore intrinsic sociological factors, both in terms of the interaction between forces, and each force's organizational structure and internal dynamics, such as social climate, morale, and leadership. This paper describes a symmetric adaptive model of combat, in which the use of feedback allows opposing forces to attempt to regulate the intensity of the fight, or even abandon the fight, depending on battlefield losses. Furthermore, parameters are introduced to provide a framework for incorporating the sociological structure and dynamics of the two forces. A preliminary analysis of the model is presented.

Keywords:

• combat model
• conflict
• organizational dynamics
• feedback
• nonlinear difference equations
• attrition