Cognitive war at the heart of China’s socialization strategy

Cognitive war at the heart of China’s socialization strategy

Tanguy Struye de Swielande, Kimberly Orinx and Simon Peiffer,  “Cognitive warfare at the heart of China’s strategy to undermine the West”, in Lukasz Wordliczek and Garry Robson (Ed.), Rise of the Digital Technocracy: Global Power and Local Resistance in a Post-Democratic World, Edward Elgar Publishing, 2026. https://openscience.fr/Cognitive-war-at-the-heart-of-China-s-socialization-strategy

Abstract

As a theoretical concept, cognitive warfare is receiving increasing attention. Yet there is a gap between the nascent literature on the subject and a thorough understanding of China’s cognitive warfare strategy and tactics, as well as the impact it has on democracies. The research hypothesises that China’s cognitive warfare strategy, while drawing on disruptive technologies and scientific advances, particularly in the field of neuropsychology, is rooted in the country’s historical strategic culture, and in particular in the indirect strategy and (de)socialisation processes in China’s worldview.

Keywords: China, Cognition, Neuroscience, Socialization, Strategic culture