Swedish National Defence College

About: Swedish National Defence College is a education organization based out in Stockholm, Sweden. It is known for research contribution in the topics: Crisis management & Politics. The organization has 218 authors who have published 569 publications receiving 8074 citations.

Reconceptualizing state formation as collective power : representation in electoral monarchies

Abstract: This article deals with the importance of collective power and value consensus among elites for medieval polity formation by analyzing electoral monarchies. State formation theory focuses on the monopoly of legitimate armed force and has pushed notions of consensus and collective power into the background. This article questions material and coercive theories of state formation and emphasizes polity formation through theories of power as collaboration and as the ability to act in concert. Royal elections had two major functions: (1) A transfer of authority that created trust and concord among elite groups and (2) constructing ideas of an abstract ‘realm’ that political actors represented and to which they were accountable in an ideational and symbolic sense. The article focuses on the Holy Roman Empire and Sweden.

Young Long-Term Unemployed and the Individualization of Responsibility

Abstract: In Sweden, as in most Western societies, a common belief is that unemployment is somehow linked to the individual, her lack of work ethic, or other personal shortcomings rather than to structural causes. This is not only manifested in public arenas such as the media or political debates but also in our social surroundings. In recent years, these views have gained importance, indicating a shift in the location of responsibilities from the welfare state to the individual. This shift entails high demands and expectations on unemployed people and is something they have to deal with and relate to. One of the most exposed groups is young long-term unemployed. The aim of this article is to highlight how the discourse of individualized responsibility is reflected in unemployed peoples’ stories, and to shed light on the ways in which young long-term unemployed adults relate to and position themselves toward this discourse. Based on 18 qualitative interviews with young Swedish long-term unemployed people, the findings show three approaches to the discourse: conformity, distancing, and resistance.

Swedish emergency hospital surgical surge capacity to mass casualty incidents

Abstract: In Sweden the surgical surge capacity for mass casualty incidents (MCI) is managed by county councils within their dedicated budget. It is unclear whether healthcare budget constraints have affected the regional MCI preparedness. This study was designed to investigate the current surgical MCI preparedness at Swedish emergency hospitals. Surveys were distributed in 2015 to department heads of intensive care units (ICU) and surgery at 54 Swedish emergency hospitals. The survey contained quantitative measures as the number of (1) surgical trauma teams in hospital and available after activating the disaster plan, (2) surgical theatres suitable for multi-trauma care, and (3) surgical ICU beds. The survey was also distributed to the Armed Forces Centre for Defence Medicine. 53 hospitals responded to the survey (98%). Included were 10 university hospitals (19%), 42 county hospitals (79%), and 1 private hospital (2%). Within 8 h the surgical capacity could be increased from 105 to 399 surgical teams, while 433 surgical theatres and 480 ICU beds were made available. The surgical surge capacity differed between university hospitals and county hospitals, and regional differences were identified regarding the availability of surgical theatres and ICU beds. The MCI preparedness of Swedish emergency care hospitals needs further attention. To improve Swedish surgical MCI preparedness a national strategy for trauma care in disaster management is necessary.

Risk and Safety Attitudes Among Conscripts During Compulsory Military Training

Abstract: The purpose was to examine relationships between individual characteristics, leadership, group cohesion, and risk and safety attitudes among Swedish conscripts (N = 389). The longitudinal questionn ...

Russia’s Hybrid Warfare in the East: The Integral Nature of the Information Sphere

Abstract: Future adversaries will increasingly rely on technological means to execute their operations, utilizing cyber capabilities to control or support ‘Hybrid Threats.’ Hybrid Threats are multimodal, low intensity, kinetic as well as non-kinetic threats to international peace and security. Examples of Hybrid Threats include asymmetric conflict scenarios, global terrorism, piracy, transnational organized crime, demographic challenges, resources security, retrenchment from globalization and the proliferation of weapons of mass destruction.Cyber-conflict and cyber-warfare are great examples of the use of new technologies within the scope of Hybrid Threats. Cyber-war refers to a sustained, computer-based cyber-attack by a state (or non-state actor) against the IT infrastructure of a target. The combination of new technology and its availability make cyber-supported or cyber-led Hybrid Threats so potent. Cyber threats strike at the core of modern war fighting by affecting Command and Control abilities, which have become vulnerable to such cyber-attacks.Russia has been one of the most prolific users of cyber capabilities. In 2007, Russia attempted to disrupt Estonia’s Internet infrastructure as retribution for the country’s removal of a WWII Soviet War Memorial from the center of Tallinn. Russia also augmented its conventional military campaign in Georgia with cyber capabilities, which severely hampered the functioning of government and business websites.In the present conflict in Eastern Ukraine, Russia has effectively used the information sphere as an integral tool in its Hybrid War against the people of Ukraine.