Curing Analytic Pathologies: Pathways to Improved Intelligence Analysis

A wide range of problems have contributed to the unease currently pervading the Intelligence Community. A significant number of the most serious problems result from shortcomings in intelligence analysis rather than from defects in collection, organisation, or management. The obvious and very public failures exemplified by the surprise attacks of September 11, 2001 and by the flawed National Intelligence Estimate (NIE) of 2002 on Iraqi weapons of mass destruction (WMD) have resulted in a series of investigations and reports that have attempted to identify the causes of those failures and to recommend corrective actions. This book examines and explores the pathways for improved intelligence analysis and curing analytic pathologies in intelligence gathering.