How does Intelligence Analysts Operate? An Essay on Cognition in Intelligence-Led Policing

Abstract: Cognition in Intelligence Analysis is a crucial compartment of understanding how the analysis is shaped. By acknowledging Intelligence Analysts as human, they become liable to the same cognitive constraints that shape everyday thinking. This study outlines how cognition is used in the analysis. It aims to explore how cognition influences how the analyst assesses information and verify their assessments. To do so, the study is a case-oriented study on Polisregion Syd’s Intelligence Department. Interviews were conducted and the collected material was analyzed with a cognitive perspective. The theoretical framework was developed by merging theory of individual cognition with theory that took into account the institutional context in which the analysis was implemented. The analysis revealed that analysts aimed to be cognitively as reflective as possible. But due to limited resources, cognition fell back to intuition and informal approaches to make analysis achievable. Also, there was a difference between how the analysts used cognition, and how they perceived its effects on the analytical product. Conclusively, the thesis provides a linear and structured analysis that can be easily deconstructed and further used to create additional, subsequent hypotheses for future studies.