Meet some of our researchers
Do you want to learn more about our researchers and what we do at the Swedish Defence University? Here you will find interviews with some of the researchers at the Swedish Defence University.
Our researchers are experts within the fields of societal security, defence, leadership under stressful conditions and crisis management. Below you will find interviews with some of them about their research and current projects.
He wants to strengthen the link between research and military practice
John Olsen, Colonel and Professor of War Studies, has been Head of the Department of War Studies since 1 January 2026. Following a long career in the Royal Norwegian Air Force and several in...
Understanding politics through images and emotions
Roland Bleiker is Professor of International Relations at the University of Queensland and the 2026 holder of the Olof Palme Visiting Professorship at the Swedish Defence University. During...
War beyond the battlefield
For more than 20 years, Victoria Basham has studied how societies prepare for war and how people make sense of that preparation in their everyday lives. Her research moves beyond strategy an...
“We need to create exercises that actually lead to learning”
Erik Hedlund, Professor at the Department of Leadership and Command & Control, has in recent years focused his research on how civilian and military actors cooperate in exercises. His stu...
"I felt a need to do something concrete"
Erik Melander has spent more than 30 years researching war and armed conflict, from Bosnia and Nagorno-Karabakh to South Africa, Thailand and Ukraine. As a newly appointed professor at the S...
Exploring the dynamics of collaboration
Per Becker has worked with issues relating to crisis management, risk and total defence for virtually his entire career – in Sweden, internationally and in the field. Since 1 July 2025 he ha...
She researches feminist activism in Latin America
Feminist activists in countries with high levels of violence in Latin America are increasingly facing backlash. Julia Zulver, researcher and Wallenberg Academy Fellow at the Depratment of Wa...
"Coordinating details can be harmful"
Hans Liwång is a new professor of Systems Science for Defence and Security, a subject at the nexus of technological development, defence and major societal issues. He believes in diversity a...
"I want to contribute with new knowledge and make a difference"
Aida Alvinius' research spans areas such as leadership in crisis and war, gender, and sustainability in the workplace. She is driven by a strong commitment to create change. "I even gave bi...
From West Point to the Swedish Defence University
On 1 January 2025, Professor Antulio Echevarria assumes his role as the inaugural holder of the Tibell Visiting Professorship in War Studies. He will also serve as the director of the Swedis...
Interdisciplinary perspective on crisis management
Focus on soft issues and be prepared to compromise. This enhances the ability to lead organizations through major crises, according to Christian Uhr, who is the new adjunct professor in Lead...
With a focus on sexual violence against civilians
Maria Eriksson Baaz's research revolves around violence against civilians, particularly with a focus on sexual violence in both war and peace contexts. "In situations where sexual violence...
"We need to learn more about Russia"
Although Russia has been high on the news agenda since the invasion of Ukraine on the 24th of February 2022, Oscar Jonsson is convinced that we need more knowledge to understand and evaluate...
Sweden's path to NATO
Magnus Christiansson has transitioned from being a teacher at the Karlberg Military Academy to becoming a researcher and senior lecturer at the Swedish Defence University. He frequently appe...
"Knowledge of history provides a better understanding of the present"
Aryo Makko is the new Visiting Professor of Military History at the Swedish Defence University. His research focuses on the history of international relations in the 19th and 20th centuries,...
"I like to ask big questions"
Antoine Bousquet is a researcher that likes to look at broad historical processes and draw connections from different fields. He has recently published a second edition of his first book Th...
Military history research provides new perspectives
Having begun her research career focusing on European politics during the Cold War, Maria Gussarsson's interest in military history was sparked when she started digging in the War Archives....
Passive-destructive leaders are the worst
Maria Fors Brandebo's research has unexpectedly shown that it is the passive destructive leadership behaviors that often have the greatest negative impact. "They not only exacerbate workpla...
A security policy jack-of-all-trades
Kjell Engelbrekt has conducted research in the areas of European security policy, transatlantic security and superpower diplomacy. His current research focus is to evaluate Sweden's role in...
He wants to strengthen the empiric historical research
With a strong anchoring in the empirical tradition, Professor Steve Murdoch hopes to contribute with new knowledge, both about the military-diplomatic relations between Scotland and the Nord...
"A common thread in my work is to support innovation management"
Ingrid Kihlander has been in place as an adjunct professor in innovation management at the Swedish Defence University since October 9, 2023.
How is leadership affected by the organisation?
Erik Berntson has long been interested in leadership issues and his research focuses on the organisational conditions for managers in leadership positions. "There is quite a lot known about...
From submarine commander to professor
Roar Espevik has a background as a submarine officer and extensive experience in leadership development under stressful conditions. His drive to try something new led him to the Swedish Defe...
She wants to contribute to more secure oceans
Associate Senior Lecturer Adriana Ávila-Zúñiga Nordfjeld's research focuses on port and maritime safety and security. With extensive experience in the field, one of her driving forces is to...
“Information is the core of security policy”
As social media and digital channels make the news flow both faster and more readily available, it has become increasingly clear that information is an instrument of power. Charlotte Wagnsso...
RESEARCH NEWS
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Nearly SEK 10 million for two research projects on wartime preparedness and total defence24 Nov 2025The Swedish Research Council has awarded nearly SEK 10 million to two new research projects at the Swedish Defence University, both of which will deepen knowledge of total defence, wartime p...
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New research project maps the early modern roots of Swedish intelligence20 Nov 2025Martin Neuding Skoog, Senior Lecturer in military history at the Swedish Defence University, has been granted SEK 2,105,000 by the Torsten Söderberg Foundation for the research project Stat...
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The Swedish Defence University signs the Magna Charta Universitatum17 Nov 2025On 13 November 2025, the Swedish Defence University signed the Magna Charta Universitatum during a formal ceremony at King's College in London.