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MIT OpenCourseWare
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Intelligence: Practice, Problems and Prospects
- Instructors
- Prof. Barry Posen, Prof. Harvey Sapolsky, Prof. Robert Vickers
- Term
- Spring 2005
- Level
- Graduate
- What's inside
- 1 reading · 3 web pages
- Materials open
- MIT OCW
About this course
Source: MIT OpenCourseWare 17.951 Intelligence: Practice, Problems and Prospects, Spring 2005, Prof. Barry Posen, Prof. Harvey Sapolsky, Prof. Robert Vickers — original course page on ocw.mit.edu ↗. License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0. Study order: MIT's own listing order, section by section. Taken from MIT's published course files, downloaded from ocw.mit.edu on September 23, 2026. How RedLectern is built.
Materials are grouped the way MIT organized them. A verified, course-wide order has not been established here.
Before you start
Prerequisites are not listed here. Check MIT's own syllabus for this course.
How this course was organized
What's here, and what isn't
- A lecture sequence of 14 items is confirmed. It stays as organized materials rather than a full course order.
Not included here
6 items from the source could not be safely included:
- MIT's page format for this item wasn't recognized clearly enough to place it safely. (6 items)
Course outline
Calendar · Lecture Notes
Lecture 2: Origins, Structure, and Functions of the Intelligence Community This session will examine the current organization and functions of the various members of the intelligence community and the role of the DCI. It will also introduce elements of the intelligence reform debate such as centralization vs. decentralization.
Calendar · Lecture Notes
Lecture 3: Collection This session will discuss the various collection functions and the relative merits of human and technical collection, including various proposals for change. It will also look at the use of open source material and discuss classification issues. Finally, it will address the debate about if there is too much collection and not enough analysis and the need for greater interaction between collectors and analysts on relative priorities.
Calendar · Lecture Notes
Lecture 4: Analysis This session will examine how the community interacts in theory and practice, the different types of intelligence, especially current and estimative, and the difference between puzzles and mysteries. It will also look at the role of the National Intelligence Council in producing joint products and the issue of dissent, with the Iraq WMD estimate as a case study.
Calendar · Lecture Notes
Lecture 5: Intelligence and National Policy This session considers the relationship between policymakers and their intelligence advisers. Recent events have rekindled fears that intelligence has become “politicized.” What does this mean? What other problems are common to intelligence-policy relations? Are these problems manageable? The war in Iraq will serve as a case study.
Calendar · Lecture Notes
Lecture 6: Surprise Attack and Strategic Warning This session will examine the role of strategic warning. It will discuss different approaches to warning and the problem of credibility. It will examine the current warning process, how warning priorities are determined, the difference between capabilities and intentions, and the role of denial and deception. Can surprise be avoided or is it a permanent feature of the practice of intelligence? Various case studies will be discussed, including the Indian nuclear test and 9/11, along with the debate about policy successes and warning failures.
Calendar · Lecture Notes
Lecture 7: Military Intelligence This session focuses on the use of intelligence for military purposes. It asks whether wartime intelligence is unique, and to what extent intelligence contributes to military success. It also examines the increasing use of national intelligence assets for military operations. Finally, it looks at the use of intelligence in net assessment, operational planning, and targeting.
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Lecture 8: ASW Case Study
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Lecture 9: Counterinsurgency This session will discuss the continued importance role of asymmetric warfare and the role of intelligence in counterinsurgency and low intensity conflict. Vietnam and the lessons learned will be applied to more recent counterinsurgency efforts.
Calendar · Lecture Notes
Lecture 10: Covert Action This session will focus on the CIA’s role in executing foreign policy through the conduct of covert action. Special emphasis will be placed on the activities during the Reagan administration and post-9/11 efforts.
Calendar · Lecture Notes
Lecture 11: Counterterrorism The focus in this session will be on the role of intelligence in counterterrorism and the requirements for both tactical and strategic analysis. It will also examine the role of centers in the intelligence community, especially the Counterterrorism Center. Finally it will look at the historical separation between domestic and foreign intelligence, the different roles of intelligence and law enforcement, and what this means for the future.
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Lecture 12: WMD and Nonproliferation This session will examine the role of intelligence in support of counter-proliferation and the special problems of denial and deception. It will focus on countries of key proliferation concern, including North Korea, Iran, Iraq, and Libya, and the growing threat of acquisition of WMD by terrorist groups.
Calendar · Lecture Notes
Lecture 13: Intelligence and Democracy This session will address various issues related to intelligence oversight and accountability, the problems of secrecy in an open society, and ethical and moral questions about fundamental values.
Calendar · Lecture Notes
Lecture 14: Future Threats and Intelligence Reform This final session will look at potential future challenges to U.S. national security, and examine whether the various intelligence reforms efforts will enable the intelligence community to meet the challenge.
MIT OpenCourseWare, Prof. Barry Posen, Prof. Harvey Sapolsky, Prof. Robert Vickers, 17.951 Intelligence: Practice, Problems and Prospects, Spring 2005.
License: CC BY-NC-SA 4.0 · Edition: Spring 2005 · Open the original course on OCW ↗
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