The battlespace expanded inside the human mind, yet no one agrees what that means. This bibliometric analysis of 289 publications (1981–2025) exposes a paradox: exponential post-2020 growth masks conceptual fragmentation and a geographic asymmetry. Using PRISMA-aligned analysis, the study reveals Western and NATO dominance across technological, psychological, and doctrinal clusters – while Russian and Chinese conceptions remain systematically underrepresented. Interpreted through Clausewitzian and Schelling frameworks, the study argues that cognition constitutes a new grammar of strategy, shifting competition from infrastructure to interpretation. The analysis positions knowledge itself as strategic terrain, bridging empirical mapping and strategic theory.
Mapping the cognitive warfare literature: A strategic analysis (1981–2025)
Russo, Sara
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2026-01-01
Abstract
The battlespace expanded inside the human mind, yet no one agrees what that means. This bibliometric analysis of 289 publications (1981–2025) exposes a paradox: exponential post-2020 growth masks conceptual fragmentation and a geographic asymmetry. Using PRISMA-aligned analysis, the study reveals Western and NATO dominance across technological, psychological, and doctrinal clusters – while Russian and Chinese conceptions remain systematically underrepresented. Interpreted through Clausewitzian and Schelling frameworks, the study argues that cognition constitutes a new grammar of strategy, shifting competition from infrastructure to interpretation. The analysis positions knowledge itself as strategic terrain, bridging empirical mapping and strategic theory.I documenti in IRIS sono protetti da copyright e tutti i diritti sono riservati, salvo diversa indicazione.
