Analytical Studies & Frameworks
9 PublicationsUndergrounds in Insurgent, Revolutionary, and Resistance Warfare (2nd Ed.)
Analyzes the organization, security, and operations of underground movements, offering insights into how clandestine networks sustain resistance over time. The 2nd edition draws on modern case material and incorporates significant revisions to the original 1963 SORO study.
Human Factors Considerations of Undergrounds in Insurgencies (2nd Ed.)
Explores the psychology, recruitment, and group dynamics that drive individuals to join and remain active in underground movements. The 2nd edition draws on psychology, political science, economics, sociology, and organizational studies to update the original 1966 SORO publication.
Legal Implications of the Status of Persons in Resistance
Examines how insurgents, partisans, and civilians are classified under international and domestic law, clarifying their rights, risks, and obligations. An essential reference for understanding the legal framework governing irregular warfare participants.
Threshold of Violence
Examines how and why resistance movements transition from nonviolent protest to armed struggle, analyzing the factors that influence the decision to resort to violence. Provides a framework for identifying escalation indicators and understanding the tipping points of insurgency.
The Science of Resistance
Explores why resistance movements emerge, how they organize, and what factors shape their strategies and outcomes. Provides a framework for understanding resistance across a spectrum from nonviolent action to armed struggle, drawing on political science and organizational theory.
Resistance and the Cyber Domain
Examines how resistance movements use cyberspace for communication, organization, and influence while also facing new vulnerabilities. Offers insights into narratives, operational security, and the evolving role of cyber operations in irregular warfare.
Understanding States of Resistance
Develops a phasing framework to explain how resistance movements emerge, grow, and decline. Integrates insights from law, economics, and political science to analyze their progression and outcomes across historical and contemporary cases.
Understanding Resistance
Introduces key concepts for analyzing contemporary resistance, from phases of mobilization to legitimacy, external influence, and the transition from movements to governance. Provides Special Operations Forces with conceptual tools for assessment in the field.
The Day After Overthrow: How the Behavior of the State and the Resistance Shapes Post-Overthrow Outcomes
Examines 69 cases of state overthrow since World War II, analyzing how the behavior of both governments and resistance movements shapes post-transition outcomes — from recurring civil war to stable governance. A data-driven framework for predicting post-conflict trajectories.
Resistance Manual & Pocket Guide
2 PublicationsResistance Manual
Provides a comprehensive guide to resistance theory, organization, and dynamics, integrating insights from political science and history to explain how movements form, sustain themselves, and adapt under pressure. The core doctrinal synthesis of the ARIS program.
Resistance Pocket Guide
Distills key concepts of resistance, insurgency, and unconventional warfare into a compact reference for military leaders and planners, emphasizing doctrine, phases of resistance, and critical factors for success. Designed for field use and rapid orientation.
Case Studies in Insurgent, Revolutionary & Resistance Warfare
12 PublicationsCasebook on Insurgency and Revolutionary Warfare — Vol. I (1933–1962) Revised Ed.
A survey of insurgent and revolutionary campaigns from 1933 to 1962, capturing early organizational patterns, strategies, and the influence of external actors. Originally produced by SORO in 1962 and updated under ARIS. Covers 23 insurgencies from the first half of the twentieth century.
Casebook on Insurgency and Revolutionary Warfare — Vol. II (1962–2009)
An examination of insurgencies from 1962 to 2009 across multiple regions, analyzing Cold War and post–Cold War dynamics in shaping movements and outcomes. Covers 23 insurgencies from the latter half of the twentieth century through the early twenty-first.
Case Studies: Fostering Effective Counter Unconventional Warfare / Occupation
A study of resistance against Soviet and Russian aggression, distilled into lessons for designing counter–unconventional warfare strategies and national resilience. Examines how states and populations organize and sustain resistance against occupying powers.
The Rhodesian Insurgency and the Role of External Support (1961–1979)
A case study of the nationalist insurgency against white minority rule, focusing on ZANU and ZAPU and the influence of competing Soviet and Chinese external support. Examines sanctuary, material aid, and diplomatic cover alongside Rhodesian Security Forces cross-border responses.
Colombia (1964–2009)
A case study of Colombia’s long insurgencies, examining the origins, structures, and strategies of groups such as FARC, ELN, M-19, and AUC, alongside government countermeasures and lessons for future conflict. One of the most complex protracted insurgency environments of the modern era.
Guatemala (1944–1954)
A study analyzing Guatemala’s revolutionary period, detailing the political, social, and military factors that contributed to instability and regime change. Documents the mechanics of the CIA-backed counterrevolution and how external intervention shapes insurgent outcomes.
Sri Lanka (1976–2009)
A study of the protracted conflict between the Sri Lankan state and the LTTE, analyzing insurgent strategy, government responses, and the factors leading to the war’s conclusion. Covers both the LTTE (Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam) and the JVP insurgencies in depth.
Algeria (1954–1962) — Revised Edition
A case study of the Algerian War of Independence, highlighting FLN insurgent methods, French counterinsurgency measures, and the role of population mobilization. Examines the strategic cost of tactical victory and the political dimensions of decolonization warfare.
Greece During World War II
An examination of the Greek resistance to Axis occupation, focusing on guerrilla operations, competing factions (EAM, ELAS, EDES), and the impact on liberation and postwar politics. Originally published by SORO in 1961 and updated under ARIS.
Cuba (1953–1959)
A case study of the Cuban Revolution, tracing the rise of Castro’s insurgency against Batista and the strategies that enabled its victory — from the Sierra Maestra guerrilla campaign to urban underground operations and the political collapse of the regime.
The Patriot Insurgency (1763–1789)
An analysis of the American Revolution as an insurgency, highlighting organization, foreign support, and the transformation of colonial resistance into independence. Examines how a colonial irregular force defeated a conventional military power through sustained asymmetric warfare.
The Relationship Between Iran and Lebanese Hizbollah
A study of the strategic, financial, and operational ties linking Iran with Hizbollah, underscoring the network’s role in regional unconventional warfare. Examines state-sponsored proxy relationships as a model for external support structures in irregular conflict.
Try clearing a filter or adjusting your search.
// Filter by Series
// Filter by Content
// Quick Navigation