Methods for assessing tactical decisionmaking in battle

A method is described for assessing military command decisionmaking using simulation experiments and dynamic simulation modelling, along with some typical results. The simulation studies have been carried out in the Research, Engineering, and Systems Analysis (RESA) facility. RESA is a facility for presenting large-scale, event-driven battle simulations with realistic scenarios. The RESA facility has been used primarily for training naval battle force staffs and for studies of advanced sensor and weapons concepts. The author's interest was to use the RESA facility for man-in-the-loop studies to determine the cognitive and decision processes of warfare commanders during battle. The simulation experiments measured the overall effectiveness of the C/sup 3/I system with the performance of the commanders as its principal determining factor. The aim of the research program is to improve the design of future C/sup 3/I systems by identifying and ameliorating human information processing and decisionmaking problems associated with critical battle decisions.<>