University of Jyväskylä received nearly 300,000 euros for two projects supporting cognitive security and crisis resilience
The Faculty of Information Technology at the University of Jyväskylä received funding for two projects supporting cognitive security and societal crisis resilience.
The Scientific Advisory Board for Defense (MATINE) granted 99,508 euros in funding to the project Cognitive Security – Experiences and Preparedness to Defend, which aims to develop a cognitive security barometer. The total funding for the project is 123,991.
According to Hilkka Grahn, the Senior Lecturer leading the project, the barometer can be used to monitor the level of cognitive security in Finland and the readiness of Finns to defend themselves against hostile cognitive influence.
"The results of the project will also help strengthen individuals' ability to recognize and counter hostile cognitive influence. This promotes Finland's overall security and the stability of Finnish society. This is a new scientific development, as to our knowledge, no similar research has been conducted in Finland or internationally," Grahn explains.
In addition to MATINE, NordForsk awarded the University of Jyväskylä 173,818 euros in funding for a project to develop a digital game designed to improve young people's digital citizenship skills and strengthen societal crisis resilience.
In addition to the University of Jyväskylä, the joint Nordic project Playing for Democracy: Strengthening Youth Resilience Against Digital Threats in the Nordic-Baltic Region involves Uppsala University in Sweden, Tallinn University in Estonia, and the University of Inland Norway.
Grahn says that the game in development deals with realistic hybrid influence scenarios, and players practice recognizing manipulation, verifying information, and solving democratic dilemmas amid uncertainty.
"The game utilises fictional threat scenarios inspired by current geopolitical events. The aim is to ensure that the game strengthens critical thinking and democratic capacity without undesirable consequences such as increased cynicism, polarization, or excessive self-confidence," Grahn explains.
The total scope of the project funded by NordForsk is 763,556 euros.
"It is great that projects related to new dimensions of security, such as cognitive security, are now being funded. This type of research is a natural fit for multidisciplinary universities such as the University of Jyväskylä, because only a multidisciplinary approach can provide an understanding of constantly changing information environments and the influence exerted within them. The research is also a naturally fitting part of our faculty's and the university's wide-ranging security research," Grahn sums up.
