Special Project

Influencing Human Behaviour

For as long as wars have occurred, information has been a vital in shaping outcomes on the battlefield. In recent years, the role of information in conflict only gained importance, as information and communication technologies advance and cognitive psychology evolve. With the ever-larger and more evasive employment of information-based capabilities to target human cognition, boundaries between the battlefield and beyond have faded. To further discussions on and advance our understanding of the use of information to influence behaviours in the military context, the Royal Netherlands Army has commissioned the Platform Influencing Human Behaviour.

The papers

Catch up on the entire series: information to influence behaviours in the military context.

Start with the End: Effect Measurement of Behavioural Influencing in Military Operations

Balancing Act: Ethical and Legal Dilemmas of Behavioural Influencing in Military Operations

Behavioural influence interventions in the information environment: Underlying mechanisms and techniques

A discursive analytical approach to understanding target audiences: How NATO can improve its actor-centric analysis

Influencing security professionals: Are they biased and by which source?

Cognitive Warfare as Part of Society: Never-Ending Battle for Minds

The concept of Information Manoeuvre: Winning the Battle of Perceptions

Smart Tactics or Risky Behaviour? The Lawfulness of Encouraging Civilians to Participate in Targeting in an Age of Digital Warfare

Deception as the Way of Warfare: Armed Forces, Influence Operations and the Cyberspace paradox

Cognitive Effects in Combined Arms: A Case Study of the Division 2025

The parallel front | An analysis of the military use of information in the first seven months of the war in Ukraine

Information-based behavioural influencing in the military context: mapping current expert thinking

Weapons of mass influence: Shaping attitudes, perceptions and behaviours in today’s information warfare

Putting it together by bringing ‘influence’ back in: Exploring European influencing options across different future Russias

Behavior-Oriented Operations in the Military Context

From Blurred Lines to Red Lines: How Countermeasures and Norms Shape Hybrid Conflict | Countering ISIS Propaganda in Conflict Theatres

Influencing Human Behaviour

The HCSS platform Influencing Human Behaviour comprises of a number of products including papers and media.

Evasive information in the Military Context

The development of evasive information and communications technologies bear far-reaching consequences, also for military organisations. In information warfare, non-kinetic, information-based capabilities are employed to target human cognition, seeking changes in attitudes, perceptions and behaviour by manipulating the flow of information. As influencing efforts have grown, Western military organisations are shifting their attention to focus on information-based capabilities. In this rapidly evolving information environment, armed forces are faced with a myriad of questions and dilemmas.

The purpose of this platform

We have brought together international experts and practitioners with both military and non-military backgrounds to explore, discuss, build and share knowledge on information-based behavioural influencing in the military context. This platform provides a space for experts and practitioners to examine and dissect the ethical, legal and military-strategic issues and boundaries that are involved.

HCSS Experts – Influencing Human Behaviour

Michel Rademaker

Michel Rademaker

Deputy Director

Björn de Heer

Björn de Heer

Strategic Analyst

Laura Jasper

Strategic Analyst

More on Influencing Human Behaviour

News

New report | Start with the End: Effect Measurement of Behavioural Influencing in Military Operations

New report | Balancing Act: Ethical and Legal Dilemmas of Behavioural Influencing in Military Operations

New HCSS paper series: Information-based behavioural influencing and Western practice

Laura Jasper | Podcast: Disentangling Disinformation

Laura Jasper | NOS op 3: Hoe Zelensky telkens de aandacht pakt

De Strateeg | Strategische Vragen: Kan je een oorlog winnen dankzij mythevorming?

De Strateeg: Hoe mythevorming Oekraïne helpt in de oorlog

Helga Salemon bij NOS Met het Oog op Morgen | Hoe verloopt de informatieoorlog tussen Zelensky en Poetin?

Michel Rademaker in de Telegraaf | Afgeluisterd als wapen; de strijd om de beeldvorming

Multimedia

Explainer met Laura Jasper | NOS op 3: Hoe Zelensky telkens de aandacht pakt

Information-based behavioural influencing in the military context

Analysing the military use of information in the first seven months of the war in Ukraine

De Strateeg: Hoe mythevorming Oekraïne helpt in de oorlog

De Strateeg: Strategische Vragen | Wanneer ben je deelnemer aan een informatieoorlog?

De Strateeg: Hoe defensie zich kan wapenen tegen de informatieoorlog

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