Implementing Mission Command Philosophy

The United States Army's transition from counter-insurgency operations to large-scale ground combat has brought to light concerns on using mission command philosophy, specifically decentralized operations, to defeat a peer threat. A peer threat has technology that can break down U.S. Army command and control architecture, outrange U.S. artillery, and attack individual weapon systems with cyber capabilities. A peer threat places a focus on how a company, platoon, or section should be able to operate without immediate feedback from a higher headquarters. The problem, according to the 2015 Department of the Army Inspector General Survey, is the inexperienced leaders at the company echelon and below do not understand how to implement mission command philosophy. This research used psychology, specifically self-determination theory, to find a basis for the Army to develop tools to implement mission command philosophy at the lowest echelon of leadership.