ABSTRACT
This chapter will review how neuroscience can contribute to intelligence analysis and prediction, discussing relevant research programs within the US Department of Defense, US Department of Homeland Security and the US intelligence community. These initiatives can be divided into the areas of (1) strategic intelligence, (2) intelligence analysis and decision-making, (3) threat detection and (4) neuroscience and interrogation. It will be shown that neuroscience can substantially contribute to these areas and that this can lead to a vastly improved understanding of social dynamics and even individual behaviour. Some of the findings of neuroscience already question our current approaches towards threats and this may lead to techniques for better mitigating threats such as terrorism and for avoiding conflicts and crises in the first place. Some of it, most importantly, ‘mind-reading’ using brain scans will remain controversial and may require more legal regulation in the future.
