NET BENEFIT OF PERFORMANCE-ENHANCING DRUGS WITHIN U.S. ARMY SPECIAL FORCES
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Authors
Alford, Chad A.
Chang, Sean
Subjects
performance-enhancing drugs
PEDs
performance-enhancing substances
human optimization
human enhancement
PEDs
performance-enhancing substances
human optimization
human enhancement
Advisors
Strawser, Bradley J.
Date of Issue
2020-12
Date
Publisher
Monterey, CA; Naval Postgraduate School
Language
Abstract
The United States Army Special Forces (USASF) depends on high fitness levels to accomplish higher-risk missions in various environments and under the most extreme conditions. USASF stresses the importance of improving an operator’s strength, endurance, and cognitive ability. Soldiers within USASF undergo a rigorous selection process to secure the right person for the right job and adhere to the Special Operations Forces (SOF) truth: humans are more important than hardware. Thus, performance-enhancing drugs (PEDs) can serve a vital role in an operator's ability to become bigger, faster, stronger, or smarter. To understand the use of PEDs within USASF, we ask: “How much does USASF benefit from researching and implementing performance-enhancing drugs given the current knowledge of biotechnologies?”
Our thesis explores research on PEDs from competitive sports and overlays it with the USASF mission sets while considering the mechanics of PED use and side effects to gain a better understanding through an operational lens. We argue that PEDs can be beneficial to USASF but only in certain capacities. Our personal experiences as Green Berets and the use of declassified missions support our conclusion. Furthermore, our findings depict how PEDs could be beneficial in both capacity-building and capacity-restoring roles; however, due to limited data on PED use in the military, a more in-depth review is needed to determine the impacts on the USASF Regiment.
Type
Thesis
Description
Series/Report No
Department
Defense Analysis (DA)
Defense Analysis (DA)
Organization
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Sponsors
Funder
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Distribution Statement
Approved for public release. distribution is unlimited
Rights
This publication is a work of the U.S. Government as defined in Title 17, United States Code, Section 101. Copyright protection is not available for this work in the United States.