#158 Brian Godwin on Countering Cognitive Warfare

<p>The Cognitive Crucible is a forum that presents different perspectives and emerging thought leadership related to the information environment. The opinions expressed by guests are their own, and do not necessarily reflect the views of or endorsement by the Information Professionals Association.</p> <p>During this episode, US Army Brian Godwin discusses his thesis: From Perception to Protection: Countering Cognitive Warfare in the U.S. Army. His study seeks to address the critical question of how the U.S. Army can protect the force against cognitive warfare, with a specific focus on understanding the strategies and tactics employed by China and Russia. It employs a qualitative comparative case study method, examining China’s cognitive warfare campaign during the COVID-19 pandemic and Russia’s interference in the 2016 U.S. election. The study reveals significant gaps and limitations in the Army’s existing Doctrine, Training, Leadership and Education, and Policies (DTLP). These areas provide minimal defense against cognitive warfare, indicating a vulnerability of the force. In response to these findings, this thesis proposes several key recommendations to strengthen the Army’s resilience against cognitive warfare, including the prioritization of media literacy in Army training and education, revisions of DTLP to effectively counter cognitive warfare, the application of inoculation theory to boost psychological resilience, and the cultivation of active relationships with Joint, Interagency, Intergovernmental, and Multinational (JIIM) partners.</p> <p><strong>Resources</strong>:</p> <ul> <li aria-level="1">Cognitive Crucible Podcast Episodes Mentioned <ul> <li aria-level="2"><a href= "https://information-professionals.org/episode/cognitive-crucible-episode-29"> #29 Jan Kallberg and Stephen Hamilton on Force Protection in the Cognitive Domain</a></li> </ul> </li> <li aria-level="1"><a href= "https://www.amazon.com/Media-Warfare-Taiwans-Battle-Cognitive-ebook/dp/B09KMBHS4X"> Media Warfare: Taiwan’s Battle for the Cog