Global Security and Intelligence Studies Volume 5, Number 1, Spring / Summer 2020 | Page 7

Global Security and Intelligence Studies • Volume 5, Number 1 • Spring / Summer 2020
Editorial Welcome
Greetings and welcome to the Spring/Summer 2020 issue of Global Security
and Intelligence Studies Journal. This installation of GSIS is a special
edition focusing on the emergence of the 6 th warfighting domain; the Psychological
Domain. This issue is very exciting and packed with insightful research,
must read book reviews, policy recommendations, and an interview with Mr. Emerson
Brooking, author of LikeWar: The Weaponization of Social Media.
The nature and execution of warfare has evolved throughout history. Warfare
was once solely conducted through physical engagement of an enemy, armies
dueling in will and might on the field of battle. Evolutions in technology introduced
Naval and Air power to further influence and expand the battlefield. Most
recently technology has opened the door to both Cyber and Space warfare. For the
first time in history nations are able to leverage their might without the need for a
physical presence or kinetic munitions.
Now, there is evidence supporting the weaponization of social connectivity
and information sharing. The fundamental principles of psychology are being
used as a weapon to inspire a nation’s citizens against one another. In 2007 the
world witnessed Estonia receive the first volley of attacks in an international cyber
war. But another significant event occurred intertwined and largely unnoticed in
the Bronze Revolution that shut down an entire nation. The battle was also the first
instance of psychology employed as its own front on a multi-domain battlefield
where no soldiers ever took up arms or held a line. Since this instance the employment
of psychology as more than just a tool of conflict has grown in intensity and
sophistication.
Scholars and practitioners alike have struggled to resolve the roles of psychology
in modern warfare while being constrained with ideas, tools, and processes,
intended for use in more traditional warfare. As a result fragmented terms
such as the Human Domain, Cognitive Domain, Information operations, Behavioral
Domain, and Psychological Operations or Warfare have made their way into both
academia and some operational publications with little unifying and no clarifying
efforts. It is the aim of this collection of research to draw a line in the sand and
declare the formal establishment of the Psychological Domain as the 6 th warfighting
domain.
As the name implies Psychological encompasses each of the aforementioned
bits of vernacular without unnecessarily limiting the scope or application
of the domain. Terms such as human, cognitive, and behavior are all parts of the
larger psychological field. Use of the term psychology may conjure images of the
infamous Project MK-ULTRA or ‘enhanced interrogations’ used in the War on
Terror. However, these examples highlight the need for specificity in terminology.
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doi: 10.18278/gsis.5.1.1