Research hub for scandinavian intelligence studies

INTELHUB is an innovative, multi-disciplinary research community on intelligence studies.

We focus on the question: How can legitimacy of intelligence services be built, maintained, and restored?

Questions concerning the legitimacy of intelligence services have been increasingly posed after a long series of intelligence scandals in the Western world over the last decades. In response, INTELHUB investigates ways to ensure the legitimacy of intelligence services with a focus on the Scandinavian intelligence communities. INTELHUB emphasises studies on topics such as the feasibility of increased transparency and perceptions of accountability.

INTELHUB also seeks to advance a Scandinavian perspective on intelligence studies.

As a field, Intelligence studies is dominated by American and British perspectives. With INTELHUB we pave the way for studies on how intelligence services can obtain, maintain, or restore legitimacy in a Scandinavian culture characterised by a high degree of social cohesion and trust.

Furthermore, INTELHUB challenges and enhances the scholarly literature on legitimacy by applying intelligence services as an extreme case of building institutional legitimacy under conditions of secrecy.