Language, Regional Expertise, and Culture in the Military: State of the Science

Military advantage in the twenty-first century depends on more than precision weapons and advanced systems. It requires the ability to understand people, navigate cultural contexts, and communicate effectively across linguistic boundaries. Language, Regional Expertise, and Culture in the Military: State of the Science, edited by Jeff R. Watson, Richard Wolfel, and Adam Kalkstein, and published in February 2026 by the West Point Press, offers a rigorous and timely examination of how language, regional expertise, and cultural competence (LREC) shape military readiness and effectiveness in today’s complex global security environment.
This interdisciplinary edited volume brings together military practitioners and academic scholars to assess the current state of research and practice in LREC. The contributors explore how these competencies inform training, strategic planning, leadership development, and operational execution. In doing so, the book situates LREC not as an ancillary skill set, but as a core component of deterrence, interoperability, influence operations, and alliance-building. At a moment when multinational operations and strategic competition demand nuanced cultural understanding, this collection provides a substantive framework for integrating linguistic and regional knowledge into institutional and operational contexts.
The volume is distinguished not only by the range of perspectives represented, but also by its grounding in both scholarship and applied military experience. Editor Jeff R. Watson, Ph.D., serves as Associate Professor of Applied Linguistics and Chair of Linguistics and Language Acquisition in the Center for Languages, Cultures, and Regional Studies at the U.S. Military Academy. Trained in Russian and Second Language Acquisition at Bryn Mawr College and the Middlebury Institute of International Studies, Watson brings deep expertise in language pedagogy and assessment. He is joined by Richard Wolfel, Ph.D., Professor of Geography and Chair of Cross-Cultural Competence at West Point, whose research examines cross-cultural competence assessment and urban social geography, and Adam Kalkstein, Ph.D., Chair of Regional Expertise and a climate scientist whose work bridges geography, human systems, and environmental change. Together, the editors reflect the interdisciplinary foundation essential to LREC scholarship.
As with all West Point Press publications, this volume is platinum open access, ensuring that scholars, military operators, and interested readers worldwide can engage its findings without cost barriers.
Learn more about Language, Regional Expertise, and Culture in the Military: State of the Science here: https://press.westpoint.edu/books/lrec-in-the-military/