Interplay Of Capabilities Research Articles

The interplay of capability and complexity in military context: definitions, challenges, and implications

ABSTRACT This paper explores the interplay between capability and complexity within the context of military forces. The findings here describe how these two concepts intersect and highlight the capability definitions, themes, challenges, opportunities, and applications. By running a thorough review of 314 articles, 10 key research themes have been identified, including: 1) Capability Development and Assessment, 2) Regional Defence Studies, 3) Technological Advancements in Military, 4) Strategic Analysis, 5) Operational Tactics, 6) Defence Industry Dynamics, 7) Organisational and Management Aspects, 8) Cybersecurity and Network Capabilities, 9) Military Training and Exercises, and 10) Policy and Political Implications. Among these themes, the literature highlights the importance of a subtle understanding of capability and complexity for well-informed decision-making in military and defence domains. Moreover, this study identifies gaps in existing research and emphasises the need for a coherent theoretical framework to guide decision-makers for military capability acquisitions. The findings have implications for enhancing national security, defence capability planning and resource allocation strategies.

CAPABILITIES, CULTURAL DISTANCE AND THE EFFECTIVENESS OF KNOWELDGE FLOWS WITHIN THE MNC.

This paper aims to shed light on the interplay of capabilities and knowledge transfer effectiveness. Adopting a dynamic capabilities perspective, we provide a new angle on knowledge transfers within MNCs. Empirical data on 324 knowledge transfer relationships of MNC units, i.e. headquarters and subsidiaries, was used to test the impact of coordination and systems capabilities on knowledge transfer effectiveness. Our results show that organizational capabilities are vital to increase knowledge transfer effectiveness and that coordination capabilities are moderated by cultural distance. As an extension, we explore some differences between knowledge flow directions in the MNC.

Capability and hostile behavior in arms race models

The interplay of capability and hostile behavior as indicators of threat is under‐conceptualized in arms‐race research. I propose that the motivation (intentions) attributed to a state's hostile acts depends on its capability: the less capable it is, the stronger the motivation. Controlling for the amount of hostile acts, if a state's capability level rises overtime its intentions would appear less malign, hence the state might seemless threatening (if threat perception is sensitive to intentions). In a static arms‐competition model this implies a hypothesized negative sign for the arms‐reaction coefficient. I support this interpretation primarily by testing a statistical model of the U.S.‐Soviet arms competition and, secondarily by showing that past quantitative research also generated considerable, yet little‐noticed, evidence of negative coefficient signs.