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The '''Total Force Concept''' is a doctrine created by [[Chief of Staff of the Army]] [[Creighton Abrams]], and [[Secretary of Defense]] [[Melvin Laird]], as one way to avoid entanglements, without widespread public support, such as the [[Vietnam War]]. It reflected some of the opinions legislated as the [[War Powers Resolution]]. As opposed to the [[Weinberger-Powell Doctrine]], which are criteria for decisionmaking, Total Force was structural.

The mechanics of Total Force moved most of the [[combat support]] and [[combat service support]] functions of the Army &mdash; the units required for sustained operations &mdash; into the Reserve Components: the [[United States Army Reserve]] and the [[Army National Guard (United States)]]. 

It now includes military retirees, DOD civilian personnel, contractor personnel, and force multipliers
such as employer and community support.<ref nameJP4-05>{{citation
 | title = Joint Publication JP4-05, Joint Mobilization Planning
 | date = 11 January 2006
 |author =[[Joint Chiefs of Staff]]}}, p. I-5</ref>