Welcome to JSOU Press
JSOU Press is the scholarly publishing arm of United States Special Operations Command (USSOCOM). We are USSOCOM’s go-to publisher for research of interest to the Special Operations Forces (SOF) community. We pride ourselves on our unique ability to put knowledge into the hands of SOF professionals and aim to inform national policy and strategy with quality research. Since our inception in 2004, we have edited and published more than 250 peer-reviewed scholarly monographs, edited volumes, reference manuals, occasional papers, and quick looks. The works included here are solely the ideas of the authors and do not necessarily reflect the official position of USSOCOM or the Joint Special Operations University.
SOF-Related Reading
Articles and other publications from outside of JSOU that are relevant to the SOF enterprise.
Maximizing the Indigenous Approach: Using Secondment to Enable our Partners and Constrain our Adversaries
By Wyatt Thielen
Published September 2025 by the Irregular Warfare Initiative
The Enlightened Warrior: Applying Reason and Critical Thinking in Special Forces
by David Maxwell
Published August 2025 by Small Wars Journal
Space and Ice: Envisioning Special Operations Forces’ Role in Future Operational Environments
by ,
Statecraft, Strategy, and the Special Forces Soldier: The Philosophical Foundations of Unconventional and Political Warfare
by David Maxwell
Published July 2025 in Small Wars Journal
Building Strategic Lethality: Special Operations Models for Joint Force Learning and Leader Development
By Spencer B. Meredith, III
Published in Joint Force Quarterly 118, Q3 2025
MISSION
The Joint Special Operations University Press supports JSOU and the U.S. Special Operations Command by publishing open-access materials that address topics relevant to the SOF enterprise. Research into priorities unique to the special operations enterprise helps provide new and creative solutions in support of command priorities.
VISION
The JSOU Press publishes materials developed specifically for and unique to the special operations enterprise worldwide. Topics include irregular warfare, counterintelligence, insurgency, resistance and resilience, psychological operations, strategic competition, counterterrorism and more. Publishing researched-based academic works provides valuable information that addresses concerns of critical importance to U.S. Special Operations Command and Department of Defense leadership.
Top Publications
Featured Publications
Cognitive Warfare to Dominate and Redefine Adversary Realities: Implications for U.S. Special Operations Forces
Golden Dome: A Special Operations Forces Overview
Leveraging Contingent Capital as a Non-Traditional Discipline of Economic Warfare
Resilience and Resistance: Interdisciplinary Lessons in Competition, Deterrence, and Irregular Warfare
Recent Publications
Golden Dome: A Special Operations Forces Overview
Cognitive Warfare to Dominate and Redefine Adversary Realities: Implications for U.S. Special Operations Forces
Leveraging Contingent Capital as a Non-Traditional Discipline of Economic Warfare
Who Are the Green Berets Supposed to Be? Revisiting the Special Forces Identity Crisis
ARTIFICIAL INTELLIGENCE (AI) POLICY
JSOU copyright and plagiarism guidance protects original and creative works, both published and unpublished, which have been fixed in tangible medium. It is unacceptable to submit generative AI as one’s own work. Anyone submitting a paper for JSOU Press publication consideration, including JSOU students, faculty, and staff, MUST disclose use of generative AI in their work, including text generation and image generation, and cite it properly. An AI tool (e.g., ChatGPT, Gemini, CoPilot) is not considered an author but rather a source and should be cited as such. Authors should verify AI output with credible sources and cite those sources, not the generative AI. Failure to properly attribute the use of generative AI is considered plagiarism.