Abstract for: Vying for Survival: Bolstering a Proxy Actor's Military Capability

Understanding how policy interventions affect the composite capability of a proxy actor is critical for policymakers who desire to increase the capability of actors engaged in proxy wars. Leveraging manpower modeling, this study shows how this approach can be used to connect the experience level of an army to personnel capability. Additionally, utilizing organizational equipment lifespan and maintenance models, this research investigates the effects of increasing maintenance rates and its effects on equipment capability in a military. By leveraging a systems dynamics model, this study constructs a simulation tool that allows policymakers to analyze the effects of their decisions on an actor’s overall composite capability as a combination of equipment and personnel capability.