The SFRS Lab is conducting a data collection project on military domestic roles. Beyond the barracks and battlefield, armed forces around the world are taking on responsibilities such as law enforcement, education, environmental management, public health, infrastructure development, and domestic security.
The pilot data collection by the SFRS Lab across 47 countries show that in the past two decades, especially in the wake of 9/11 and the COVID-19 pandemic, militaries have taken a variety of responsibilities around the world. The SFRS Lab aims to understand the causes and effectiveness of state-building initiatives through:
- Collecting the first comprehensive cross-national dataset (1970–2024) capturing the full spectrum of military domestic roles,
- Developing new theory explaining the causes and effectiveness of these roles,
- Conducting surveys in multiple countries to understand public perceptions of military domestic roles.
This work will not only advance scholarship on civil-military relations but also provide an invaluable resource for policymakers, governments, and civil society actors interested in strategies and effectiveness of military supported state-building initiatives.