Be All That You Can Be:

Enhancing Human Performance'

DANIELDRUCKMAN~
George Mason University

Key findings and conclusions from a landmark study conducted by a National Research
Council Committee are discussed. The 12-year study was divided into 4 phases that cov-
ered topics of individual, small group, and organizational performance. Concentrating pri-
marily on techniques with strong claims for enhancing performance, the committee found
little support for some (e.g., sleep learning, meditation, parapsychological techniques, hyp-
nosis, total quality management) and stronger support for others (e.g., mental practice,
expert modeling, cooperative learning, team training, practice to optimize transfer of cogni-
tive and social skills). Insights were also obtained about the roles of expectancy effects,
belief perseverance, emotions, thought suppression, and organizational cultures. The article
highlights the continuing contributions made by committee members in such areas as trans-
fer, expert modeling, self-efficacy, mental practice, organizational design and enhanced
performance, and conflict resolution.

In their 1990 Psychological Science article, Swets and Bjork described

the activities and reported results obtained from a study sponsored by the
Army Research Institute (ARI) and conducted by a National Research Council
(NRC) Committee on Techniques for the Enhancement of Human Performance
(henceforth, the committee). They also described the agenda of topics and struc-
ture of a second-phase committee effort under way at the time the article
appeared. Since then, two more 3-year phases of the committee's work have been
completed. Over the course of 12 years, the committee has produced four books
published by National Academy Press (Druckman & Bjork, 199 1, 1994;
Druckman, Singer, & Van Cott, 1997; Druckman & Swets, 1988). The books
cover a wide variety of techniques and issues concerned with enhancing human
performance.

'An earlier version of this article was presented at the Spring meeting of the North Carolina
Industrial and Organizational Psychologists in Raleigh, North Carolina o n March 30, 200 I . Special
thanks go to Robert Bjork, Warner Burke, Kim Cameron, Micki Chi, Gerald Davison, Michael Drill-
ings, Eric Eich, Deborah Feltz, George Huber, Ed Johnson, Lynne Reder. Jerome Singer, Daniel
Wegner, and Gary Yukl for their contributions to this aricle.
'Correspondence concerning this article should he addressed to Daniel Druckman, Institute for
Conflict Analysis and Resolution, George Mason University, 4260 Chain Bridge Road, Fairfax. VA
22030-4444. E-mail: ddrucknia@gmu.edu

2234

Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 2004,34,1 1 , pp. 2234-2260.

Copyright CS] 2004 by V. H. Winston & Son, Inc. All rights reserved.
 ENHANCING HUMAN PERFORMANCE 2235

The committee has contributed to scholarship and practice in the area of

human performance. Scholarly contributions have consisted of providing state-
of-the-art reviews of theory and research in a large number of areas, suggesting
ideas for new research on these topics, and offering new conceptual and
methodological approaches for investigation. Practical contributions include
evaluations of techniques purporting to improve individual, group, and organiza-
tional performance; recommendations for implementing some of the techniques
in the Army and elsewhere; and standards for judging the adequacy of various
techniques and approaches. The committee also served as a model for a new
journal, PsychofogiculScience in the Public faterest (Bjork & Ceci, 2000). This
journal follows the committee’s mandate to connect science to public policy.
Both the scholarly and practical contributions made by the committee are pre-
sented in this article. In addition, new research projects stimulated by the com-
mittee’s findings are discussed in the context of findings on each of the topics.
The research activities following the committee’s work illustrate the value of an
NRC committee in generating important contributions to the field. These contri-
butions and activities are discussed following a brief overview of the committee’s
history.

At the Beginning: The NRC and the Army

In his 1988 Scientific American review of the committee’s first book, Philip
Morrison said

“Be all that you can be,” those Army billboards urge. To turn many
a young man or woman into a skilled technician or a soldier fit for
battle is a major part of what the U.S. Army must do, but time is
short, turnover is high, severe stress is certain, and not all the
learners are prepared to progress (in the sense of having been
trained effectively). (p. 108)

He goes on

The Army’s mission frees it from most social norms of schooling:

What goes is what will work. It is no surprise that “some influen-
tial officers” are out to find new educational techniques, however
extraordinary (they may seem). Nothing can be rejected as implau-
sible . . . novel techniques often appear as well-promoted pack-
ages, supported by adherents who voice unstinted claims. (p. 108)

These quotes capture well the context within which the committee conducted
its work for 12 years. In 1984, the U.S. Army Research Institute asked the
National Academy of Sciences to form a committee to examine the possible
2236 DANIEL DRUCKMAN

value of certain techniques that had been proposed to enhance human perfor-
mance. The 14-member committee, chaired by John Swets, met for the first time
in June 1985. Little did we know at the time that this would be the beginning of
an extraordinary experience that would expose us to worlds that none of us could
have imagined existed. Clients eagerly seeking quick fixes are vulnerable to the
most extraordinary sales pitches made by entrepreneurs eagerly seeking to make
quick fortunes. Fueled by self-delusion, the buyers create a market for products
whose claims often do not correspond with their value. Our challenge then was to
evaluate the claims for a set of techniques being considered by the Army for use
in their training programs.
The set of techniques that was examined in the first phase could be viewed as
repackaged New Age approaches to performance. Many of them were developed
during the 1960s as part of the counterculture human potential movement. In the
I980s, advocates of the techniques had some success in marketing them commer-
cially with an appeal to self-help that was less ideological (in the sense of appeals
to lifestyle) and more directed toward improved performance.
Although the Army was interested in evaluations of particular techniques, the
committee decided that it would be more useful to consider them as being repre-
sentative of classes of techniques aimed at accomplishing certain purposes, such
as enhancing learning, improving motor skills, altering mental states, managing
stress, or improving social processes. This decision would allow us to include a
larger research literature in our review and evaluation. It would also address more
basic issues concerning psychological or social psychological processes. By
doing so, our review would have larger implications for performance issues, con-
tributing both to practical and theoretical literatures. However, applied concerns
related to missions influenced the particular processes that we chose to examine.
The first phase of the committee’s work was intended to provide guidelines
for ARI programs. Four areas were impacted directly by the committee’s recom-
mendations: parapsychology, neurolinguistic programming (NLP), rapid learn-
ing, and mental practice. Proposed programs on parapsychology and NLP were
not implemented. Conclusions about rapid learning led to another look at these
techniques, and recommendations made about mental practice produced research
within the ARI (Swets & Bjork, 1990). The next three phases, chaired by Robert
A. Bjork (Phases 2 and 3) and Jerome E. Singer (Phase 4), were intended prima-
rily to provide direction for the research community, rather than for ARI pro-
grams. The NRC committee was encouraged to identify promising lines of
research on human performance. By so doing, it was thought that the committee
would stimulate research in the academic community that could not be sponsored
by a government agency with limited resources. The committee’s findings did
serve to stimulate research on many topics. Examples of a number of these con-
tributions are presented along with the committee’s findings on each of several
themes in the sections to follow.
 ENHANCING HUMAN PERFORMANCE 2237

A Second Look With Spin-offs

With regard to learning, the committee chose to investigate learning during

sleep and accelerated learning. These choices were related to the Army’s desire
to reduce training time. The review of the literature and briefings on sleep learn-
ing suggested that little if any learning is likely to occur when the learner is
asleep (e.g., Aarons, 1976). However, more recent developments in research sug-
gested that we might want to give sleep learning a second look. This is because
we discovered, in research on implicit memory and learning without awareness
(e.g., Tulving, 1985), that certain types of learning could take place during sleep
and that certain measures (not used in the earlier research) were sensitive in
picking it up. Particularly interesting were repetition, enhancing post-sleep per-
formance on materials learned before sleep, and priming, facilitating post-sleep
acquisition of material presented during the preceding sleep period (for a review
of the studies, see Eich, 1990).
These findings stimulated a group of researchers at the University of Arizona
to explore further these implications. They found that although some degree of
sleep learning may be possible, it is likely to be inefficient and to have detrimen-
tal effects on a person’s subsequent waking performance (Wood, Bootzin,
Kihlstrom, & Schacter, 1992). Based on this second look, a third look seemed
unnecessary. The work on sleep learning also led the committee to explore the
related topic of subliminal learning in its second phase. Although short-term
effects on performance of relatively simple tasks have been shown to occur for
stimuli presented in the absence of conscious awareness, there is no evidence for
long-term changes in complex actions taken in real-life circumstances (for more
recent conceptualizations and research on the issue, see Merikle, 1988, 2000;
Merikle, Smilek, & Eastwood, 2001). Further, with regard to techniques, the
commercial subliminal tapes examined by the committee failed to meet the mini-
mum standards for subliminal perception: Messages were neither subjectively
perceptible, nor objectively detectable. One angry proprietor of tapes held the
Academy responsible for a drop in revenues and brought a suit against the insti-
tution.
The reviews done on subliminal perception and hypnosis called attention to
involuntariness for actions taken under hypnosis and anomalies of will in dissoci-
ation. These findings presented puzzles about why and when will is experienced,
leading to a theory of apparent mental causation developed by Wegner and
Wheatley (1999) and further elaborated by Wegner (2002). This is a theory about
why people experience conscious will for their actions. It is one of several exam-
ples of how work being done in the committee context by other members (Eich,
Kihlstrom) stimulated new research by a member not initially involved in the
work (Wegner). It is also the kind of heuristic impact encouraged by the commit-
tee’s sponsor (the ARI).
2238 DANIEL DRUCKMAN

Learning Packages, Cults, and False Advertising

Our work on accelerated learning concentrated on teacher-learner dynamics

with implications for packaged programs used to speed the learning process. We
were particularly intrigued with a popular package known as suggestive acceler-
ated Ieavning and teaching techniques (SALTT). Based on research done in the
1970s by the Bulgarian psychologist Lozanov (1978), who referred to the
approach as suggestopedia, SALTT is a conglomeration or package of traditional
and nontraditional procedures, including spacing, repetition, and Baroque back-
ground music. It has a small but strong following among members of the Society
for SALTT, which also publishes a journal, and has been adopted for use in a
number of private schools.
We found that the claims far exceeded the results, although many of the eval-
uation studies were flawed (see review by Schuster & Critton, 1986). Further,
positive effects of these techniques may be accounted for largely by either
expectancy (Harris & Rosenthal, 1985) or motivated teacher effects (e.g., Begg,
Duft, Lalonde, Melnick, & Sanvito, 1989). The SALTT classroom encourages
these processes. Nonetheless, we were impressed with the idea of packaging
techniques to maximize impacts on learning. The idea of integrating different
factors intended to enhance motivation and learning is attractive, but we know
little about the relative contribution of these factors to learning.
I applied the packaging idea to my own research on negotiation. Referred to
as the situational levers of negotiatingflexibility, I constructed simulation sce-
narios consisting of combinations of variables hypothesized to influence flexi-
bility. Using a pair-comparison procedure, I was able to unpack the variables in
order to ascertain their relative impacts on the decisions made by the negotiators
(Druckman, 1993).
Some years later, the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) asked me to evaluate
a commercial package for language learning based on these principles. The com-
pany claimed 300% increases (virtually overnight) in learning foreign languages.
Based, at least in part, on the committee’s earlier review, my update of that litera-
ture, and my experience with the technique, the FTC brought suit against the
company and prohibited it from engaging in interstate commerce.

Training Works . . . But for How Long and How Far?

In its second and third phases, the committee took up the issues of skill reten-
tion (how long) and skill transfer (how far or wide). Of all the topics considered,
none has produced a body of experimental findings that rivals the work on indi-
vidual learning. Two counterintuitive insights from this research are especially
interesting. One is that procedures that might appear optimal if measured by
short-term performance may be less than optimal if performances are measured
 ENHANCINGHUMANPERFORMANCE 2239

in weeks, months, or years after training. Performance during training is often a

poor index of the learner’s level of learning and understanding. For example,
making mistakes during training and distributing the practice trials are important
to retention of the skills being developed. Training programs should be evaluated
by the extent to which they support the learner’s long-term post-training per-
formance in real-world contexts (for a review of the studies, see Chapter 3 in
Druckman & Bjork, 1991). However, training environments that resemble partic-
ular real-world environments too closely are likely to reduce the transfer of skills
(Druckman & Bjork, 1994).
The second counterintuitive insight is that performance is not enhanced when
skills are learned only in the setting in which they will be performed. Similarly,
modeling of an expert performer may be limited to those conditions and that per-
former. The teaching of abstract principles, or an understanding of the principles
behind the expert’s actions, plays an important role in acquiring skills over a
broad domain of tasks. This kind of learning is likely to be beneficial for the
development of careers. Flexible adaptations to changed conditions are likely to
contribute to productive careers, another topic discussed by the committee. The
value of flexibility is challenged by self-report inventories intended to place
people in categories, such as the popular Myers-Briggs Type Indicator
(Druckman & Bjork, 1991). The committee recommended that such instruments
not be used for career counseling.
The committee’s work on retention, transfer, and modeling issues generated a
considerable amount of new research in the years following publication of the
Druckman and Bjork (1 99 1, 1994) books. The reviews in the second phase led to
a new conceptualization of practice reported by Schmidt and Bjork (1 992).
Together with the chapter in the 1994 book on illusory learning, the committee’s
conclusions called attention to metacognitive issues concerning a learner’s judg-
ment about whether he or she acquired the critical skills and knowledge. Seven
papers by Bjork and colleagues, published between 1994 (Bjork, 1994) and 2001
(Simon & Bjork, 2001), develop these themes, including the heuristics and illu-
sions that occur as a result of training (Bjork, 1999). In addition, a large number
of presentations by Bjork and his collaborators, stretching from 1992 to the
present, have been influenced directly by the committee’s work on retention and
transfer.
One of the more controversial topics taken up was situated learning and cog-
nition. The committee’s chapter was critical of the more politicized aspects of
this approach. With the encouragement of cognitive psychologists who attended
a panel presentation on the 1994 book, committee member Reder pursued the
issues further. With Anderson and Simon (Anderson, Reder, & Simon, 1996,
1997, 1998), she published several papers that examined the approach’s assump-
tions and practices. While agreeing with proponents of the approach about the
importance of context effects on cognition, these authors take issue with the
2240 DANIEL DRUCKMAN

attempts made to eschew and disavow empirical findings on transfer and other
aspects of cognitive science. This debate has attracted considerable public inter-
est, including invitations to Reder and her collaborators to speak at international
meetings. It is an example of an issue addressed by the committee leading to an
expanded collaboration and public debate about the merits of a popular approach
to training.
Another example of the heuristic benefits of the committee’s work comes
from a review of research on expert modeling (Druckman & Bjork, 1991). Com-
mittee member Chi explored some of the open questions raised in Chapter 4 of
that publication. One question was: “Since it is known that confrontation by a
teacher is not necessarily an effective means of instruction, it is not clear why
self-perceived conflicts as obtained through reflection would be effective at
promoting learning” (199 1, p. 63). Recent research by Chi (2000) has shown that
it would be effective. Another question is that in expert modeling “one cannot
separate the role of expert from the role of learner” (Druckman & Bjork, 1991,
p. 63). This issue is explored in some detail, along with issues of scaffolding
(also discussed i n Chapter 4), by Chi and colleagues (Chi, Siler, Jeong,
Yamauchi, & Hausmann, 2001). Further, ongoing work by Chi and her col-
leagues explores the benefits of collaborative pairs of students observing a video-
tape of tutorial dialogues. Preliminary results eliminate objections raised in the
committee’s chapter: First, the tutor is not simply monitoring, but is tutoring and
scaffolding through dialogues. Second, the observer is not simply passive, but
has the opportunity to actively participate through discussion with his or her part-
ner (see also the research on cooperative learning reviewed in Druckman &
Bjork, 1994). The finding that observers, under certain conditions, do as well as
participating tutees is a promising basis for interesting research.

Less Effort, More Impact: Positive Effects

With Commercial Implications

The committee took a detailed look at the use of mental practice routines for
improving motor performance. This look led to positive recommendations that
were implemented by the Army. Mental practice refers to the symbolic rehearsal
of a physical activity in the absence of any gross muscular movements. For
example, a tennis player closes his or her eyes, and in imagination goes through
the motions of serving.
A comprehensive review of experiments showed that mental practice does
contribute to gains in performance. These gains are stronger for motor tasks that
have cognitive components and when it is combined with physical practice (Feltz
& Landers, 1983). However, these results should not be used to endorse such
popular enhancement packages as SybervisionB. These are videotapes of expert
performers repeatedly serving tennis balls or driving golf balls with background
 ENHANCING HUMAN PERFORMANCE 2241

music. As with several other commercial packages, this one contains many ele-
ments. The impact of mental practice per se in these packages is not clear; nor is
it clear how mental practice combines with (or is masked by) the other elements
in influencing performance.
This subject was investigated further in the committee’s second phase. Like
sleep learning, the committee’s research recommendations made in its first phase
(Druckman & Swets, 1988) were implemented by researchers in time for review
in the second phase. This research had gone further in identifying specific proce-
dures and combinations of mental and physical practice that contribute to
enhanced performance, including the value of repetitive pre-performance rou-
tines for sports perf~rmance.~ Related topics reviewed by the committee include
visual concentration (ineffective), biofeedback (may be good for fine motor
skills, but generally not better than relaxation training), and other forms of
preparation and exercise that contribute to improved performance. Based on our
recommendations, the ARI supported research to investigate the impact of men-
tal practice in military training settings.
Two field experiments conducted by the ARI investigated the effects of men-
tal practice on gunnery skills and on soldering performance. The gunnery-skills
experiment compared randomly assigned participants to experimental (mental
practice training in addition to the regular Army protocol) and control (only the
regular Army protocol) groups. No differences in performance were found. How-
ever, two design problems raise questions about the comparison. One problem is
that some soldiers in the control group used mental practice spontaneously, even
though they were not instructed to do so. Another is that the groups were not
matched on pre-treatment performance. Some evidence that the experimental
group showed initial superiority in performance, despite random assignment,
may have precluded further gains for that group (Morrison & Walker, 1990).
The soldering experiment also produced no difference between randomly
assigned mental-practice and no-mental-practice groups. The problem with this
experiment, however, concerns the dependent variable. Institutional pressures for
grade inflation reduced variation in assessed performance, mitigating against
reaching conclusions about the effectiveness of the treatment. These experiments
present examples of some of the methodological problems that often arise in field
experiments, as discussed by Druckman and Swets (1988).

Much Ado About. . . and West Meets East

Altering mental states and stress management were other topics examined by
the committee in its first phase and continuing into later phases of its work. The

3These studies are reviewed in Chapter 11 of Druckman and Bjork (1991). Committee member
Landers has continued his research on this topic (e.g.. Landers, 2000).
2242 DANIEL DRUCKMAN

committee had a continuing interest in the relation between mental states and per-
formance. In our first phase, we focused on issues concerning brain hemispheric
specialization and synchronization. Meditation was the focus in the second
(Kundalini yoga) and third phases (transcendental meditation, TM). Hypnosis
and restricted environmental stimulation were subjects treated in the third phase.
Except for hypnosis, each of the topics was associated with a technique of inter-
est to the Army. The work on hemispheric specialization was used as a scientific
basis for the development of a technique known as Hemi-SyncTM(patented by
Robert Monroe of the Monroe Institute of Applied Sciences). The technique is
intended to integrate hemispheric activity presumed to enhance performance.
The committee found no evidence to support the claim that hemispheric special-
ization is linked to learning or performance or that Hemi-SyncTM,in particular,
has an impact on performance (Druckman & Swets, 1988, Chapter 6).
The committee’s work on meditation was interesting. The conclusion that
meditation may not reduce stress or improve performance any better than relax-
ation techniques was challenged vigorously by believers in the power of such
techniques, especially the TM professionals at Maharishi University in Iowa,
where political candidate and physicist John Hagelin is located. We concluded
that the rituals of meditation add little to the relaxation-and accompanying
reduced anxiety-produced by the practice. The amazing feats of some yogis
who can remain buried for many hours without suffocating are probably a result
of confidence in their ability to slow their respiration rate, as well as faith that
they can survive the ordeal if they do not panic. Perceived control and predict-
ability serve to reduce anxiety, which is probably the key to their survival
(Druckman & Bjork, 1991, Chapter 7).
The committee took issue with meta-analytic findings on meditation-
performance relationships (Alexander, Rainforth, & Gelderloos, 1991) and was
challenged at a public briefing by David Orme-Johnson, a psychologist at
Maharishi University. Orme-Johnson’s critique was bolstered by his display of
five volumes of studies produced by his colleagues. Our committee member,
John Kihlstrom, defended the committee’s conclusion through a phone line
hooked up to a microphone at the podium; this was clearly an example of turning
the tables by providing the audience with an “out-of-body’’ response!

Seems Like . . . But May Not Be

Our review of the scientific literature on hypnosis was also disappointing to

practitioners of the approach. We could find no evidence that the technique
increases muscular strength and endurance, sensory thresholds, learning, and
remembering. (Druckman & Bjork, 1994, Chapter 9, provides a detailed review
of the studies leading to this conclusion.) However, hypnotized subjects may
believe that they are doing better, and this belief may have positive motivational
 ENHANCINGHUMAN PERFORMANCE 2243

implications for performance. Like many of the techniques reviewed, effects on

performance from a hypnotic experience may be attributed to a kind of placebo
effect, which refers to the largely illusory subjective belief that the procedure is
producing the effect. Illusory effects were also the subject of another committee
review in its third phase. People are often prone to confuse the way material is
presented with their understanding of the material (Druckman & Bjork, 1994,
Chapter 4). This has also been known as the Feynman effect, named after the
physicist-teacher whose lectures were compelling enough to induce the illusion
of understanding. Both of these topics are areas of continuing research by com-
mittee members Kihlstrom, Jacoby, and Bjork.
Techniques used to reduce environmental stimulation to a minimum also have
strong claims for effectiveness (e.g., Suedfeld, 1980). The claims are based on
the therapeutic effects of restricted environmental stimulation (REST) on habit
control. Yet, the evidence has consisted largely of demonstration experiments
that have shed little light on the reasons for expecting impacts on performance.
Further research on REST by committee member Eich with Suedfeld showed that
flotation REST (compared to a control group) had a calming effect on mood,
which, in turn, influenced the recall of autobiographical memories in a positive
direction (Suedfeld & Eich, 1995). This demonstration does not, however, pro-
vide evidence for the hypothesized impacts of the technique on performance.

Feelings Matter. . . in Several Ways

Emotions play an important role in performance. Recognizing their impor-

tance has been an antidote to the cognitive revolution in psychology. Emphasiz-
ing the way that affect and cognition interact in performance, the committee
tackled such topics as the way that emotions reveal intentions, influence memo-
ries for certain experiences, play a role in communication, and shape aspirations.
Attempts made to disguise intentions may be compromised by various nonverbal
expressions. Referred to as leakage, facial expressions and body movements
have been shown to give away a person’s attempts to dissimulate or deceive
(Dmckman, Rozelle, & Baxter, 1982). When emotionality is high, as in the case
of tasks with high stakes associated with outcomes, nonverbal behaviors can be
especially revealing. The revealing behaviors are likely to be those in the liar’s
unattended channels (e.g., excessive foot movements), which are leaked as a
result of behavioral inhibition or rigidity (DePaulo, Lanier, & Davis, 1983).
Further work on this topic, stimulated by the committee’s findings, consisted of
developing the implications of culturally specific leaked cues. Following the
approach outlined in Chapter 11 of Druckman and Bjork (1991), Rozelle and his
colleagues (Rozelle, Druckman, & Baxter, 1997) showed how a research pro-
gram could be designed in stages to provide culturally specific diagnoses for
training modules.
2244 DANIEL DRUCKMAN

Another source of leaked behaviors is thought suppression. Paradoxically,

when people use suppression to free themselves of unwanted thoughts-which
may be painful or deliberately concealed to avoid detection-they actually
may increase the emotional power of the very thoughts they are trying to avoid.
Based on its review of experiments on thought suppression, the committee sug-
gested strategies for confronting unwanted thoughts in order to avoid the
unpleasant consequences of being obsessed by them (Druckman & Bjork, 1994,
Chapter 11).
Of equal importance to performance is the communication of emotions. The
committee’s work on socially induced affect showed that one person’s expressed
feelings can influence another’s feelings. The transmission is especially strong
for influencing emotions of the same valence (happy-to-happy or sad-to-sad feel-
ings) than for influencing emotions of the opposite valence (happiness to sadness
or envy).4 This process has implications for other topics studied by the commit-
tee, such as influence through mimicry, group cohesion, self-confidence, cooper-
ative learning, and team training. We know that performance is enhanced when a
person is confident and has benefited from being trained in team settings.
Research has identified the conditions for improving confidence, and the task and
incentive structures that increase the benefits from cooperative learning and team
training. Less is known about the performance impacts of emotional transmis-
sions among group members or between trainers and trainees.
Work on self-confidence is another example of continuing contributions to
knowledge stimulated by the committee’s evaluation of research on that topic.
Since the publication of that chapter in Druckman and Bjork (1994), committee
member Feltz has published 14 papers on the impact of confidence on various
aspects of sports performance, including a meta-analysis (Moritz, Feltz,
Fahrbach, & Mack, 2000) and a comprehensive chapter on the self-efficacy
beliefs of athletes, coaches, and teams (Feltz & Lirgg, 200 I). Similarly, the com-
mittee’s review of the performance implications of pain and stress management
drew on a large body of ongoing research, which, while not stimulating new
research by committee members, was the basis for a discussion of this topic in
the most recent edition of Davison and Neale’s (2001) textbook. Both of these
topics have been shown to have clear impacts on performance.

Together We Stand. . . or Fall?

Running through all of the phases are evaluations of various approaches for
enhancing social skills and performance. In the first phase, we took up issues of
interpersonal influence and group cohesion. In the second phase, we considered

4A paper prepared for the committee by Mclntosh (1994) provides a thorough review of this lit-
erature.
 ENHANCINGHUMANPERFORMANCE 2245

team performance, which was extended in the third phase to a consideration of

cooperative learning, team building, training in teams, and socially induced
affect. And, in the fourth phase, we considered issues of collaboration and con-
flict resolution in organizations.
Of all the topics considered by the committee, none is more important to the
Army than interpersonal influence or group cohesion. These topics are also cen-
tral to social psychology and have generated huge research literatures, notably
studies on persuasion, attitude formation and change, and group dynamics. Yet,
when looking for guidance, the Army has largely bypassed this literature, seeking
instead the advertised quick fixes of influence techniques or the relatively simple
assumptions made in the popular press about the value of bonding. The com-
mittee’s contribution consisted of evaluating the most influential technique
and providing a balanced portrayal, based on research findings, of the effects of
cohesion.
Our experiences with NLP led to two different conclusions. On the one hand,
we found little if any evidence to support NLP’s assumptions or to indicate that it
is effective as a strategy for social influence. It assumes that by tracking another’s
eye movements and language, an NLP trainer can shape the person’s thoughts,
feelings, and opinions (Dilts, 1983). There is no scientific support for these
assumptions. On the other hand, we were impressed with the modeling approach
used to develop the technique. The technique was developed from careful obser-
vations of the way three master psychotherapists conducted their sessions,
emphasizing imitation of verbal and nonverbal behaviors (Druckman & Swets,
1988, Chapter 8). This then led the committee to take up the topic of expert mod-
eling in the second phase of its work.
Cohesion seemed to be an article of faith for the Army. Its COHORT system
of keeping units intact is motivated by the desire to enhance group performance
by increasing group cohesion (Elton, 1984). We believed that these arguments
ought to be treated as hypotheses rather than conclusions, noting difficulties in
separating consequences from indicators of cohesion, the gap between improved
cohesion and better unit performance, the tendency to rely on single-factor
explanations for group performance, and the possibility of reciprocal effects
between cohesion and Performance. We also referred to some possible negative
consequences of cohesion, including an ineffective handling of deviance,
“groupthink,” increased impact of any existing negative norms, and increased
intergroup conflict within organizations (Druckman & Swets, 1988, Chapter 8).
The work on cohesion was extended to issues of team performance and team
building in the third phase (Druckman & Bjork, 1994, Chapters 5 and 6). One
consequence of a decrease in the popularity of group studies in social psychology
has been to leave us with too many unanswered questions about the impact of
techniques and group structures on performance. Only a few interventions
designed to improve group performance have been evaluated systematically, and
2246 DANIEL DRUCKMAN

case studies of actual groups are difficult to generalize. The enhanced morale and
cohesion resulting from team-building activities may not improve performance
and may increase intraorganizational conflict between teams. By strengthening
the ties between members within teams, the intervention can weaken relation-
ships with members of other teams in the organization. This effect is heightened
to the extent that team-building exercises include strategy formation as part of the
procedure. These issues were explored further in the committee’s fourth phase on
organizational performance, which also included a review of what is known
about intergroup and international conflict resolution. This work is discussed
following a summary of the most controversial, if not sensational, part of the
committee’s study.

Five Senses for Sure . . . But Is There a Sixth?

The considerable amount of national media publicity that followed the com-
mittee’s first book was not a result of the kinds of topics discussed to this point.
Publicity would have been more limited had we not ventured into the realms of
fact and fancy concerning extrasensory perception (ESP). The Army’s interest in
this topic stemmed from their view that, if real and controllable, ESP could be
used for intelligence gathering and, because it includes precognition, it could be
used to anticipate the actions of an enemy (among other things). One of the more
bizarre suggestions

is a conception of the “First Earth Battalion,” made up of “warrior

monks,” who will have mastered almost all of the techniques
under consideration by the committee, including the use of ESP,
leaving their bodies at will, levitating, psychic healing, and walk-
ing through walls. (Druckman & Swets, 1988, p. 171)

This suggestion was picked up by Tom Brokaw in his telecast on the day the
book was released. The experience of interacting with the community of believ-
ers was every bit as interesting as was our review of the scientific evidence.
A huge body of literature on ESP, including both reports of naturally occur-
ring incidents and laboratory studies, has accumulated in journals, monographs,
and books since 1882. Our task was to review the scientific literature, which we
did in the areas of remote viewing, random-number generators, and the Ganzfeld
psi experiment^.^ We reached a general conclusion concerning this evidence:
Although proponents of ESP have made sweeping claims for its existence and
possible applications, an evaluation of the best available evidence does not jus-
tify such optimism. The best scientific evidence does not justify the conclusion
that ESP (i.e., gathering information about objects or thoughts without the

5The research is also reviewed in a paper prepared for the committee by Alcock (1988).
 ENHANCING HUMAN PERFORMANCE 2247

intervention of known sensory mechanisms) exists. We did, however, leave a

door open for better designed experiments on these topics.
But, the strong claims made by proponents of ESP typically are not based on
experiments conducted in the parapsychological laboratory. The phenomena are
real and important in the minds of proponents. For this reason, we devoted some of
our resources to considering the role of personal experience (or qualitative evi-
dence) in supporting claims for the existence of the phenomenon. Witnessing or
having an anomalous experience can be more powerhl than large accumulations of
quantitative data as a source for creating and reinforcing beliefs. We concluded that

the alternative methods that have been used to demonstrate the

existence of the paranormal create just those conditions that have
been found to enhance human tendencies toward self-deception
and suggestibility. Concerns about making the experimental situa-
tion comfortable for the alleged psychic or conducive to paranor-
mal phenomena frequently result in practices that also increase
opportunities for deception and error. (Druckman & Swets, 1988,
p. 208)

These conclusions did not satisfy the parapsychologists.

The book release elicited strong reactions from the parapsychological com-
munity in the form of printed reprisals (e.g., McConnell, 1988), journal articles
(e.g., Bern & Honorton, 1994; McConnell & Clark, 1991; Palmer, Honorton, &
Utts, 1989), letters to the Academy president (one in particular from a wealthy
philanthropist threatened an end to his financial support for the institution), and
seminars featuring Senator Claiborne Pel1 to debate the merits of the committee’s
work. Despite strong lobbying efforts from Senator Pel1 and his staff for a federal
research program, the National Science Foundation decided against creating a
program on these issues. This aftermath provided additional material for research
on belief perseverance and related motivational biases.6

Enter Organizations: Designs, Techniques, and Cultures

The committee turned its attention in the fourth phase away from individuals
and small groups, and toward various organizational issues, including design,
culture, leadership, development, and relations with other organizations. It also
tackled aspects of international relations, particularly the role of the Army after
the Cold War.7 This change of topics shifted the makeup of the committee from
mostly psychologists to a mix of disciplines, including sociologists, management

6This is discussed in a paper prepared for the committee by Griffin (1988).

’See the summary chapter in Druckman et al. (1997) for an overview and organization of these
topics.
2248 DANIEL DRUCKMAN

specialists, and political scientists. Also, unlike the previous phases, we were pre-
sented with a relatively weak research base for deriving conclusions as a result, at
least in part, of the complexity of the subject matter. The book may be regarded
primarily as a conceptual contribution. It provides a way to think about organiza-
tions and to frame ideas for future research.
The rapid growth in the complexity of the environment and the tempo of
organizational change have altered the sequence of the relationship between
research and practice: Research now lags practice. Organizations need a rational
basis for developing strategies for change. When knowledge is lacking, managers
look for help wherever it can be found. This explains the large and expanding
market for popular approaches to organizational transformation. While some of
this advice may have utility, much of it likely will turn out to be passing fads.
Part of our task consisted of evaluating the utility of some popular techniques for
organizational effectiveness and change. Another part consisted of providing a
conceptual foundation for relating functions with processes and performance.
Following are synopses of what we discovered on each topic and the new
research stimulated by these discoveries.

On Changing and Redesigning Organizations

The history of organizations shows a pattern of evolution and revolution.

Organizations seem to alternate between long periods of incremental adjustments
or resistance to environmental change and brief periods of major redesign from
one form (hierarchies or machine bureaucracies) to another (team-based adhocra-
cies-teams assembled for projects; virtual organizations). The strongest force
for redesign is the need to adapt to a changing organizational environment. Three
types of guidance for redesign are theory and research, experience, and doctrine,
each with its own strengths and weaknesses (Druckman et al., 1997). Design
issues were addressed further in the more recent work by committee member
Huber. In a series of papers, he developed frameworks about the roles played by
team learning and organizational knowledge creation (including the use of scien-
tific knowledge) in organizational change (Huber, 1998, 1999,2001).

On Approaches to Organizational Change

This is the topic that links most closely to the themes of the committee’s ear-
lier phases. We focused attention on three well-known approaches to change:
total quality management (TQM), downsizing, and re-engineering. Despite
dramatic claims and some demonstrations of success in the popular press, these
approaches to change have not been shown to be related to improved organiza-
tional effectiveness. Although there is limited evidence to suggest that positive
results can be achieved under some circumstances, few attempts have been made
to implement them in these ways. The difticulty may lie in the objective of trying
 ENHANCING HUMAN PERFORMANCE 2249

to change core parts of an organization. Radical changes, such as those suggested

by re-engineering approaches, may create enough discomfort and resistance to
prevent change from occurring. The distrust and uncertainty caused by the pros-
pect of downsizing may militate against implementing any such strategy. With
regard to TQM, the attempt to change the culture of an organization-however
desirable that may be-may be resisted as an affront to fundamental principles on
which the organization has been based. I t is easy to see that the fundamental
changes that each approach seeks to achieve are not easily attained. Our earlier
work on belief perseverance may provide insight into these resistances (for more
on the evaluation of these techniques, see Druckman et al., 1997).
Some of the unanswered questions about why these techniques have been
generally ineffective were pursued further by committee member Cameron. He
responded to the committee’s call for more systematic investigation of the tech-
niques. With regard to downsizing, he has suggested strategies that could maintain
organizational effectiveness despite reduction and decline (Cameron & Smart,
1998). On TQM, he and his colleagues have critiqued the existing framework
(Winn & Cameron, 1998), developed a new approach for conceptualizing quality
(Cameron & Sine, 1999), and investigated the role of organizational culture as a
variable that connects the technique to performance (Cameron & Barnett, 2000).
By emphasizing the importance of the culture, Cameron connected two topics
addressed by the committee: change techniques and organizational cultures.

On Organizational Culture

Because cultures channel behaviors in some ways rather than others, there is
reason to expect that they influence organizational performance. Although pre-
cise linkages between culture and performance have not been documented, some
progress has been made by Kotter and Haskett (1 992) in specifying criteria for
defining types of cultures and performances. They distinguished between
adaptive (performance-enhancing) and unadaptive corporate cultures in terms of
core values and common behaviors. The values and behaviors can either promote
or hinder response to changing environments. They found that strong cultures
may be eficient, but are often unadaptive. Emphasizing the difference between
management and leadership, they depict contrasting processes that produce
unhealthy organizational environments on the one hand; and foster and preserve
healthy, performance-enhancing environments on the other. Taking Kotter and
Haskett’s ideas a step further, the committee described the way that strong
corporate cultures can impede negotiations over interorganizational collaboration
(see Druckman et al., 1997, and the section on interorganizational relations in
this article).
Insights into the culture-performance relationship may be obtained indirectly
by studying the way culture affects those thoughts, feelings, and behaviors that
2250 DANIEL DRUCKMAN

contribute to performance. Levers are available to create, change, or reinforce

cultures through selection, socialization, and leadership. However, because cul-
tures consist of ideas and behaviors that are more implicit than conscious,
managers may not be aware of how their actions or policies may be incongruent
with the desired culture, and thus undermine or weaken attempts to change it in
more adaptive directions (for more on organizational cultures, see Schein, 1992;
Trice & Beyer, 1993).

On Developing Leaders

Conceptions of leadership are undergoing fundamental changes. Leader

development is now considered part of an organizational system. It is intertwined
with considerations of design and culture. No longer do we think of leadership
primarily as a position in a hierarchical organization. Rather, the focus is on lead-
ership functions, which include organizing leaders into teams.
This sort of system concept of leadership-where competencies are linked to
organizational functions and missions-has implications for development. One
of these implications is that leadership competencies can best be learned on the
job or in realistic simulations of the work environment. A number of approaches
to experiential learning have been tried (e.g., mentoring, special assignments, job
rotation, multi-rater feedback workshops), but few have been evaluated. In con-
sidering any of these approaches, however, attention must be paid to the condi-
tions that encourage long-term retention of skills as discussed in the committee’s
earlier reviews of acquisition and transfer (Druckman & Bjork, 1991, 1994), as
well as on interactive gaming environments (Druckman & Bjork, 1994).
The committee’s work on leadership contributed to a framework in which the
leader takes an active role in influencing those group processes that enhance per-
formance. By influencing group process (coordination, commitment) and group
structure (goals, standards), leaders assist group members in the transition toward
self-directed work teams. Researchers have broadened their concept of leader-
ship by taking into account the performance effects of an interaction or reciprocal
relationship between leadership behaviors and group dynamics. The effects of
leadership on group performance are mediated by group dynamics. Building on
this work, committee member Yukl participated in an Army leadership sympo-
sium where he showed how these new approaches could be used to develop the
leadership skills essential for the new challenges facing the Army (Yukl, 1999).

On Interorganizational Relations

The topic of interorganizational relations is an examination of collaborations

between organizations. Collaborations occur in the private sector when companies
find that an important goal can be accomplished more easily in joint ventures or to
distribute costs. Types of collaborations vary along a dimension of managed inter-
 ENHANCING HUMAN PERFORMANCE 2251

dependence, from the least managed consortiums and alliances to the most man-
aged mergers and acquisitions. They occur most easily (and effectively) in highly
networked industries. But, regardless of the type of collaboration, a pattern can be
discerned for the way the arrangement is negotiated. Referred to as a life cycle, the
process consists of five stages: pre-engagement, negotiation and renegotiation,
operation, evaluation, and exit (Druckman et al., 1997).
A variety of conditions influence the success or failure of a collaboration,
including culture clashes, approaches taken by leaders, group identities as
divided or cross-cutting, and stresses on the persons responsible for managing the
relationships between the organizations. Among the unanswered questions are
the conditions for effective collaborations between organizations forced to work
together for expedient reasons (as in many political or military alliances) and
between nonmarket organizations who are concerned more about ideology and
mission than about profits.
Committee member Burke included a section on interorganizational relations
in his most recent book (Burke, 2002). He added this fourth level of analysis-
individual, group, larger system, interorganizational-as a result of his work with
the committee. The committee’s chapter on this topic in Druckman et al. (1 997)
is summarized in some detail in Burke’s book. In a personal communication, he
commented that participation on the committee had a considerable influence on
his subsequent thinking, writing, and consulting. Rather than generating specific
research projects, this example shows how the committee influenced a member’s
general approach to a topic.

On Changing Missions and the Role of Conflict Management

An analysis of the 16 post-Cold War missions confronting the Army (e.g., tra-
ditional peacekeeping, election supervision) indicates that they have varied in
terms of two dimensions: Army roles as primary or third party, and mission pro-
cesses as integrative or distributive (Druckman et al., 1997). These dimensions
were then used to identify skills and training strategies.
The missions require different combinations of combat and contact skills.
Our focus was on developing the contact or human-relations skills, a focus not
typically emphasized in military training programs. Menus of goal setting, anal-
ysis, strategies, tactics, and maneuvers were tailored to the distinctions made
between roles and processes. Additional considerations include dealing with
culture shock, interacting with civilians, dealing with people who have different
perceptions of the conflict, and experiencing new social structures and norms.
Many of the training issues discussed in earlier phases come into play here, nota-
bly retention and transfer issues.
But, a larger issue is the extent to which overall mission effectiveness
depends on training. Even with the best training, some contextual factors may
2252 DANIEL DRUCKMAN

limit the effectiveness of missions. These factors include geography, the amount
of violence in the situation, type of conflict, and timing of interventions. Effec-
tiveness at the micro level of interpersonal interactions, for which conflict-
management skills are particularly useful, may not translate into effectiveness at
the macro level where contextual factors play a larger role. The evaluation of
effectiveness depends on the goals established for a mission, and managing
conflicts or stopping violence may be sufficient for some missions, while longer
term resolution is appropriate for others (Druckman et al. 1997). Our discussion
of evaluation issues led us to conduct a forum in which different views were
debated among five scholars of peacekeeping. The exchange appears in
Druckman and Stem (1997).
In addition to the forum on peacekeeping, committee members Diehl, Wall,
and Druckman collaborated on several projects. One project consisted of expand-
ing the committee’s two-dimensional framework of peacekeeping operations
(distributive and integrative tasks; primary and third-party roles). A third dimen-
sion was added (contact and combat activities) and applied to an analysis of
conflict-resolution roles (Druckman, Wall, & Diehl, 1999) and to mediation
(Wall, Druckman, & Diehl, 2002). Both of these chapters provided advice for
peacekeepers and developed implications for civilian conflict-resolution roles.
Another project consisted of an empirical investigation of mediation activities
in various peacekeeping missions. An experiment was designed to evaluate the
impact of three variables-dispute severity, time pressure, and peacekeeper’s
rank-on choice of mediation technique. Peacekeepers used more techniques in
the severe dispute condition than in the non-severe dispute condition. And, con-
sistent with image theory (McAllister, Mitchell, & Beach, 1979), they used tech-
niques that had a higher probability of success, even if they were not familiar or
easy to implement (Wall & Druckman, 2003). These projects are examples of
how the committee process fostered productive collaboration among members.

At the End: Appreciating the Committee’s Work

The committee’s work across the four phases produced an impressive series
of books on enhancing human performance (EHP). Our findings and recommen-
dations have contributed to a variety of academic research and practitioner com-
munities and have been cited frequently.* While capturing the state of the science
on many topics, the books also have informed training practice, within the U.S.

XOnecitation search engine (IS1 Web of Science) generated about 150 journal articles that cited
the committee’s books, divided as follows: Druckman and Swets (1988), 33%; Druckinan and Bjork
(1991), 320/0;Druckman and Bjork (1994), 27%; and Druckman et al. (1997), 8%. Interestingly, the
citations covered most of the topics addressed in the books. Thirty-six percent of the citations to the
first committee book (Druckman & Swets, 1988) were on the parapsychology findings.
 ENHANCING HUMAN PERFORMANCE 2253

Army and elsewhere. Credit for these contributions must be given to that rare
combination of an appreciative and patient sponsor and a committee process in
which members from different disciplines were eager to make it work. A number
of substantive and procedural conclusions follow from the experiences.

On Techniquesfor EHP

Very few of the techniques reviewed met our criteria for effectiveness or use-
fulness. Many were construed as quick fixes, and some as fads or fashions. While
taking advantage of human plasticity, the technique developers did not take into
account the implications of research on skill retention and transfer, group process,
or the persistence of organizational cultures. Had they done so, durable improve-
ments in individual, group, or organizational performance would have occurred.

On What We Do and Do Not Know

The reviews made apparent where some gaps in knowledge exist, calling for
more research. Examples are the effects of cooperative learning with adult popu-
lations in work settings, the conditions that optimize team performance, an eluci-
dation of the mechanisms that influence the way emotions are transmitted from
one person to another, the conditions for enhancing the positive effects on perfor-
mance of group cohesion and team-building interventions, the conditions that
maximize the impact or reduce resistance to techniques for improving organiza-
tional effectiveness, and a better understanding of the roles of training and con-
text in implementing peacekeeping missions. For many of these topics, the value
of further research depends on improved conceptual frameworks or understand-
ing of the phenomena and more refined methodological approaches, including
quasi-experimental field designs.

On the Heuristic Value of the Projects

Many of the gaps in knowledge identified in the committee’s books were

addressed by members in new research projects. The areas that received the most
attention were retention, transfer, modeling experts, self-confidence, mental
practice, leadership, organizational design, techniques for improving organiza-
tional performance, and conflict-resolution roles in peacekeeping. Examples of
findings from these projects were presented earlier.
Another benefit of the committee projects was cross-fertilization. Several
members were stimulated by discussions on topics not included in their own spe-
cialties and not the reason for recruiting them to serve on the committee. The
stimulation experienced by these members led to active research programs and
publications. Examples are Wegner’s book on the illusion of conscious will
2254 DANIEL DRUCKMAN

(Wegner, 2002); Kihlstrom’s articles on subliminal learning (Kihlstrom, 1996),

mental practice (Glisky, Williams, & Kihlstrom, 1996), and parapsychology
(Kihlstrom, 2000); Bjork’s work on illusions of comprehension (Bjork, 1999);
and my own articles on situational levers based in part on the packaging idea
from SALTT (Druckman, 1993) and on meta-analysis (Druckman, 1994).

On Levels of Analysis as We Move From One Phase to Another

The committee’s work has moved from a concentration on individuals to

teams or small groups to large organizations and nations. By building on the work
done in earlier phases, we have been able to draw connections between levels of
analysis. Examples include integrating social and cognitive factors in models of
cooperative learning, considering the role played by a person’s emotional state in
interactive situations, the way that organizational cultures are reflected in
thoughts, feelings, and behavior, which, in turn, influence performance, and the
relevance of findings on retention and transfer of skills for conflict-resolution
training prior to serving in peacekeeping missions. Our work on interactive
games shows a connection between the three levels of analysis: conceptual leam-
ing at the individual level, interpersonal interactions at the team level, and the
design of virtual environments for leadership training at the organizational level.
Committee member Burke (2002) showed connections that span four levels of
analysis: individuals, groups, systems, and interorganizational relations.

On the Nexus Between Theory and Practice

We learned three lessons about the applicability of theories and research find-
ings to training programs. One lesson is that the ARI makes decisions based on
implications from research findings generated by the academic community. Their
decisions to close down programs on NLP and parapsychology and to encourage
programs on mental practice were based on the committee’s recommendations.
Another lesson is that publicizing evaluations of approaches to training has a
serious impact on the markets for those approaches. Entrepreneurs and true
believers resist coming to terms with (and often try to influence the direction of)
scientific findings. A third lesson is that political policies shape the perceived
value of research on some topics. U.S. military policy on peacekeeping largely
precluded paying attention to our analyses and recommendations concerning
missions and conflict-resolution training. The impact of research must be under-
stood within the context of a national policy agenda.

On the Committee Process

This may be one of the better examples of an effective study by committee.

The range of topics covered could not be dealt with by a more specialized
 ENHANCING HUMAN PERFORMANCE 2255

research team in the time it took the committee to complete its work. Members
were chosen strategically, both for their own areas of expertise and for their
breadth of interest in the performance issues in genera!. We took advantage of
specialties through a subcommittee structure and benefited from committee-wide
input on each topic through a plenary structure or meetings of the whole commit-
tee to discuss directions and to review progress and products produced by the
subcommittees. Commissioned papers from scholars who are experts on their
subjects provided important input to the subcommittees, as did site visits to labo-
ratories and briefings.
Furthermore, the National Academy of Sciences (NAS) review process was
strenuous and rigorous. The reports were greatly improved as a result of this
feedback. It seems as though the NRC was invented to conduct this sort of study.
But, it is also the case that we may have developed our own organizational cul-
ture that had the effect of encouraging a kind of groupthink about some of the
topics we were studying.

O n Spin-08s From the Books

An important contribution of NRC committees is the wide dissemination of

their findings. In addition to informing sponsors, the results are publicized in sev-
eral ways: through public press briefings upon release of the books, through more
specialized briefings to professional associations, through syndicated op-eds, and
through next-day media coverage. The first book received the largest amount of
publicity: The New York Times and Washington Post ran headline stories, and
NBC News reported the findings the day of the briefing.9 Many of us appeared
on call-in radio programs across the country, and I coauthored a syndicated op-ed
with the committee chair after each phase.
The spotlight that focused on our work-in all the phases-was second only
to the publicity for scientific research afforded by some other NRC books and by
the Nobel Prizes. Other spin-offs consisted of decisions made by the sponsoring
organization, and these were discussed earlier in this article.

On My Role in All of This

1 was the link between phases, the “institutional memory” for the committee’s
work. It was a unique experience, not even remotely similar to what I had done at
think tanks, consulting firms, or at universities. Consider the challenges of

”om Brokaw said that an NRC report proved that “indeed men walk through walls.” A more
detailed reporting of the study’s conclusions was precluded by the television network’s videotape
problems. His statement, made in jest, led to some hesitation by the Army to continue the committee’s
work into a second phase. Several briefings were needed to undo the damage caused by this national
news report.
2256 DANIEL DRUCKMAN

ensuring sufficient support from the sponsor, recruiting and then motivating vol-
unteer committee members, managing the process during and between meetings,
contributing to the substance of the report, integrating the various parts into a
whole, editing the chapters, responding to reviews, balancing sponsor interest
with independence from sponsor influence, and setting the stage for the next phase
as resources began to evaporate. Further, I was doing all of this while trying to
maintain my own career of research on conflict resolution. Like many life experi-
ences, you cannot do this work forever. I valued the time I spent with the members
of NRC committees. It was a unique opportunity to learn and contribute to applied
social science (for more on research consulting careers, see Druckman, 2000).

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