The Fallacies of Fourth and Fifth Generation Warfare
The Fallacies of Fourth and Fifth Generation Warfare
by Derek K. Barnett
Download the Full Article: The Fallacies of Fourth and Fifth Generation Warfare
In evaluating current warfighting trends (and reconciliatory attempts to understand said trends), it appears the conceptual model of Fourth-Generation Warfare (4GW) (and, by extension, Fifth-Generation Warfare (5GW)) has achieved a level of dominant preeminence to the point of doctrinal establishment. Granted, there are frequent (and cogent) counterarguments against inherent 4GW precepts, but said arguments appear to face an almost uphill battle as 4GW/5GW concepts have permeated through the irregular warfighting spectrum, becoming established as “common knowledge.” As these terms have become commonplace, frequently spoken with self-assured absolution, it is rather troubling that these concepts of future warfare, intended to reveal (as proponents argue) the myopic stasis of “conventional” understanding, have themselves become a closed and limited paradigm. Thus, the inherent problem with 4GW/5GW (and the difficulty in countering these concepts) is the nature of their own conventionality.
Download the Full Article: The Fallacies of Fourth and Fifth Generation Warfare
CTRC Derek K. Barnett is currently serving as an All-Source Intelligence Analyst at Fort Leavenworth, Kan., for an organization that specializes in countering IED threats. He possesses a master’s degree in Strategic Intelligence and recently completed a graduate certificate program in Asymmetric Warfare.
