Intelligence and Psychology

3 Credits · Level: Graduate, Juris Doctor, Undergraduate

Intelligence and Psychology – Why Spies Spy As intelligence officers run existing sources and develop new ones, incorporating standards of tradecraft, operational security, and asset validation, they must remain closely attuned to the motivations, vulnerabilities, and often rocky mindsets of the individuals they target. They are responsible for the managing concealment, deception, and stress that all spies experience as they attempt to lead double lives. For some, the task is exciting and fulfilling; but for most, it is an exhausting rollercoaster of emotional highs and lows that often ends in difficult and even tragic ways. In this course, students will familiarize themselves with the asset recruitment cycle, operational testing, the psychological profiles of most spies, and the techniques that all intelligence officers rely on to keep spies motivated, productive, and alive. The course will focus on one of the toughest challenges to US foreign policy – Iran. Given the current spike in US-Iran tensions, nationwide protests that threaten the Iranian regime, and ever-present speculation about Israeli airstrikes or covert action inside Iran, students will have the chance to peer into the minds of the hardline officials that run Iran’s security establishment, learning about the traditional drivers of the Iranian psyche that make the job of handling and recruiting Iranian spies so complex.