Cases in Intelligence Analysis

Accomplished instructors and intelligence practitioners Beebe and Pherson have created a set of twelve robust, class-tested cases on events in foreign intelligence, counterintelligence, terrorism, homeland security, law enforcement, and decision-making support. The case studies are designed to give analysts-intraining a hands-on opportunity to apply structured analytic techniques to tackle real-life problems. Each case delivers a compelling narrative and a set of step-by-step instructions that make teaching and learning as effective and efficient as possible.

Key Features:
Questions at the start of each case challenge the student to think critically and help the students bring the case into focus; Carefully crafted narratives provide the right amount of detail to give a realistic sense of the complexity and challenges of the case; Recommended readings at the end of each narrative allow room for further research Sections entitled "Structured Analytic Techniques in Action" frame the analytic tasks and provide step-by-step instructions for applying three to fi ve analytic techniques in a series of exercises for each case study; Two hundred photos, maps, figures, tables, boxes, and technique templates support analysis and instruction; and A matrix of the cases and techniques used in each cases augment the annotated table of contents and provide students and instructors an all-in-one view of the contents.

To make the teaching of the cases as turn-key as possible, Beebe and Pherson have created a case-by-case guide, Cases in Intelligence Analysis: Instructor’s Materials, that is free to all users as a downloadable PDF. Instructor’s Materials includes solutions to all of the exercises, teaching tips, conclusions for each of the cases, and key takeaways that can be used to guide classroom discussion. Graphics from the case book and the Instructor’s Materials are also available, free, as downloadable JPEG and Power- Point slides.

Techniques covered include:

Analysis of Competing Hypotheses
Deception Detection
The Decision Matrix
Devil’s Advocacy
Force Field Analysis
Indicators
Indicators Validator
Key Assumptions Check
Mind Maps
Multiple Hypothesis Generation
Multiple Scenarios Generation
Outside-In Thinking
The Pre-Mortem Analysis
Pros-Cons-Faults-and-Fixes
Quadrant Crunching
Red Hat Analysis
Simple Scenarios
Starbursting
Strengths-Weaknesses-Opportunities-Threats
Structured Brainstorming
Structured Self-Critique
Timelines and Chronologies