CREST is inviting submissions for the 4th International Behavioural and Social Sciences in Security Conference (BASS24), which will be held in St Andrews, UK, 16-18 July 2024. The conference themes are Risk and Resilience; Information and Influence; Emerging Threats; and Global Security.
Themes
Risk and Resilience
Risk and Resilience concerns the actors that produce security threats. These include the individual and contextual factors that shape actors’ beliefs, behaviours, and motivations, and the measures that can increase resilience to security threats at the individual, community, and societal levels. Such measures may relate to preparation and mobilisation towards violence, or efforts to prevent, counter, deter or disrupt ongoing activity.
Example questions include (but are not limited to):
- What individual, group or contextual factors shape security threats?
- What informs resilience to terrorism?
- What processes influence the planning, recruitment, ideological transmission and enactment of security threats?
- What helps to prevent, counter, deter or disrupt terrorism and mobilisation to violence?
Information and Influence
Information and Influence considers how information about individuals, groups and organisational processes is elicited and assessed; and how information may be used to influence others. These interactions may take place online or offline, and may be at the dyad, group or societal level.
Example questions include (but are not limited to):
- What techniques can help people to remember and report more information?
- What techniques are effective for developing relationships?
- How do team dynamics and information flow influence an organisation’s response to evolving security threats?
- What role does mis- and dis- information play in exacerbating global security challenges?
Emerging Threats
Emerging Threats considers the challenges that emerging technology pose for national security – what existing risks do they exacerbate and what new risks might we expect in the future. Equally, and conversely, in what ways does emerging technology afford us new ways to understand and mitigate security threats.
Example questions include (but are not limited to):
- What new insights do large language models offer that allow us to understand national security threats in the next 15 years?
- How close are we to developing a digital behavioural biometric system for use in national security?
- What ethical considerations arise from the use of AI in security, and how can these be addressed?
- What are the main challenges of Generative AI for national security and how close are we to mitigating these challenges?
Global Security
Global Security considers the geopolitical dimensions of security threats. This includes how a changing geopolitical picture can shape state and non-state actors’ beliefs and behaviours and the processes that generate and inform responses to security threats. It also considers how these dynamics are informed by socio-cultural, historical, and geographical factors.
Example questions include (but are not limited to):
How do geopolitical dynamics intersect with national security on key issues such as climate change, energy security, and social polarisation?
- How does regional instability influence transnational security threats?
- What informs the process and outcome of state responses to dissent?
- What are the global security implications of new technologies such as AI and their use by state and non-state actors?
Submissions
Under each theme, we welcome theoretical, empirical or critical papers to the following categories: Conference papers; Posters; Lightning talks. Submissions are now closed. Successful applicants will receive decisions by 5th April 2024.
Conference papers
Mature research nearing journal submission or publication can be submitted as a Conference Paper. These will be delivered through a 20-minute presentation.
Lightning talks
Emerging research at the early design stage or start of data collection can be submitted as a Lightning talk. These will be delivered through a 5-minute presentation.
Posters
Mature or emerging research can be submitted as a Poster. A dedicated slot will be allocated to Posters to allow authors to answer questions on their research. Posters will be entered into a poster competition.
