Date of Award

Summer 8-23-2025

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Ph.D. in Educational Leadership and Policy Studies

Organizational Unit

Morgridge College of Education, Educational Leadership and Policy Studies

First Advisor

Nicholas Cutforth

Second Advisor

Duan Zhang

Third Advisor

Paul Viotti

Copyright Statement / License for Reuse

All Rights Reserved
All Rights Reserved.

Keywords

Military assistance, Security assistance, Security environment index (SEI), International relations

Abstract

This dissertation develops and validates the Security Environment Index (SEI), a multidimensional, empirically grounded framework to assess the political and military effects of U.S. security assistance—specifically Foreign Military Financing (FMF) and International Military Education and Training (IMET)—on partner nations. Drawing from the need for more robust monitoring and evaluation (M&E) frameworks in the security assistance space, this study addresses a longstanding gap in how policymakers measure the outcomes of military aid. The SEI consolidates publicly available indicators into a cohesive structure capable of capturing both internal and external changes in the recipient nation’s security environment.

This research employed an explanatory sequential mixed methods design, integrating quantitative and qualitative strands across three phases. In the first phase, quantitative data from global sources (e.g., Global Peace Index, Fragile States Index, Uppsala Conflict Data Program) were analyzed using exploratory factor analysis (EFA), confirmatory factor analysis (CFA), and structural equation modeling (SEM) to identify latent constructs reflecting external political conflict, internal military conflict, internal political conflict, and access to weapons. The resulting four-factor model demonstrated acceptable fit and internal consistency, offering a foundational structure for the SEI.

The second phase incorporated qualitative data from semi-structured interviews with U.S. government professionals and practitioners in the security cooperation field. Thematic analysis revealed several recurring insights: the importance of absorptive capacity in determining aid effectiveness, the unintended consequences of assistance such as dependency and regional destabilization, and the value of tailoring assistance to political and institutional context. Participants also highlighted key limitations in existing evaluation tools and supported the SEI’s potential to address those gaps.

In the third phase, findings from the quantitative and qualitative strands were integrated through joint displays and cross-case synthesis. Practitioner insights provided critical interpretation of the quantitative results, especially in relation to country-level variation and measurement gaps. This integration informed final refinements to the SEI and offered pragmatic recommendations for its application in policymaking, program design, and country-specific evaluations.

Ultimately, this study contributes theoretically by integrating conflict, governance, and security assistance literature into a unified measurement tool; methodologically by combining SEM with practitioner validation; and practically by offering an adaptable index for use by the Department of State, Department of Defense, and other stakeholders. The SEI helps bridge the disconnect between data-driven models and field-based realities, making it a timely contribution to evidence-informed security assistance strategy.

Copyright Date

8-2025

Publication Statement

Copyright is held by the author. User is responsible for all copyright compliance.

Rights Holder

Lam Huynh

Provenance

Received from ProQuest

File Format

application/pdf

Language

English (eng)

Extent

247 pgs

File Size

2.7 MB

Supplementary File Description

Security Environment Index Definitions and Data
File Format: application/vnd.ms-excel
Language: English (eng)
Extent: 2 tabs
File Size: 1.19 MB

Additional Files
Security Environment Index Definitions and Data.xlsx (1220 kB)
Security Environment Index Definitions and Data
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