فصلنامه مطالعات عملیات روانی
پیاپی 38 (زمستان 1392)

Every emerging technology has some inevitable effects and consequences on the minds and behaviors of its users in addition to its hardware and software aspects. Understanding the consequences of every technology can highly contribute to minimizing its negative effects and using it properly for intellectual and mental promotion. Direct broadcast TV satellites are one of the modern technologies which influence various dimensions of the personal and social lives of their users. The present study has been conducted on the basis of the survey method and includes a sample of 450 subjects. Our findings suggest that most audience members of the satellite programs are aware of their psychological threats and they continue to watch them being cognizant of these threats. Although the rate of awareness among men and women, different age groups, and various educational levels varies, the overall outcome of the study indicates that people are cognizant of these threats and high level of media literacy and enhancement of audience analysis power are the strategies suggested by the respondents to deal with these threats.

The main objective of the present study is to analyze the quantitative content of the programs of ‘I and You’ TV Network in order to explore the communication techniques utilized to convey its messages. The researchers’ assumption is that this channel was established following the events of 2009 presidential elections to focus on Iran. Also, this channel has a center-periphery outlook and Iran is affected by it due to being located at the trajectory of global communications and being at the periphery can expose the culture of Iran to soft war. Therefore, it is necessary to offer a suitable solution. To conduct this study, 50 shows of ‘I and You’ TV Network from among 16 different kinds of programs were randomly selected. Then, the content of the relationship between communication techniques and hostility with the Islamic Republic; promotion of luxurious life; undermining culture, religion, family and generational relationships was analyzed, and after evaluating the shows as a statistical sample and considering them as "text", the research hypothesis was tested. The results suggest that the techniques utilized by ‘I and You’ TV Network are aimed at instilling the intended culture into the target audience and there is a meaningful relationship between the above-mentioned subjects and communication techniques. Finally, some suitable schemes are offered to prevent the cultural influence of this network.

Soft war has been frequently raised in the speeches given by the Supreme Leader, Hazrateh Imam Khamenei. He has addressed the university professors and researchers as the commanders dealing with the enemy’s soft war. Economic soft war is one of the major aspects of the soft war scene, which is not often explored in soft war literature in spite of its importance and increasing focus on it. The present study aims at an autopsy of the enemies’ economic soft war against the Islamic Republic of Iran and exploration of its nature, dimensions, instruments and objectives. Using the descriptive-analytic method and benefitting from library resources, these issues are examined, both domestically and externally, with respect to the public sphere (public opinion), elites and government and governmental officials. The findings of the study indicate that economic soft war can be considered synonymous with the weakening and collapse of beliefs, values and behavioral patterns of a nation in the field of economy and includes two subfields: soft war with economic objectives and soft war with economic tools. It is obvious that Iran is involved in a full-fledged and influential economic soft war. Media-generation and image-making within the frameworks of cultural invasion with an economic dimension, sanctions and economic pressures along with the involvement of the internal agents (hoarders, brokers, smugglers) are some of the new instruments utilized by the enemies to realize this subject.

The world media play a significant role in advancing governments’ various programs. The increasing growth of satellite news channels suggests that the mass media have a substantial role in offering information services. In this context, BBC Persian TV reveals some serious content and methodological distinctions among the dynamic media and satellite television networks. Although this style will be followed with a political approach, in the short term, but, in the long run, it will wage media warfare against people’s culture, beliefs and identity (Islamic-Iranian). Given the widespread coverage of BBC Persian TV, particularly during the 2013 presidential elections in Iran, in this research work, we have evaluated ‘Your Turn’ show of this TY channel in terms of content and structure since it was of higher importance with respect to communication with and influence on the audience. The research method is quantitative content analysis and the show on June 10, 2013, two days before the presidential elections was hold, has been chosen as the sample. The results indicate that the audience members are given less time to express their different viewpoints in this program and some psychological operations techniques are used to influence them.

During the last few decades, the West has followed Satanism as a widespread and extensive activity in Iran and in the context of the ‘soft war’ in order to overthrow the Islamic Republic of Iran and break down its national independence. Meanwhile, financial gain is not the main objective of the administrators of this scenario, but rather they follow political and security goals. Activities of more than 50 Satanistic groups, according to official figures, and 200 groups, according to unofficial figures, in Iran suggest the escalation of a social crisis to a security issue. These dope groups supported financially by the U.S. are centers for attracting the youth toward carnality, alienation and sexuality. The present paper seeks to explore the activities of these groups.

Psychological operations is an instrument used to demoralize an opponent, force him to surrender and to strengthen friendly forces. Immediately after the occurrence of the Islamic Revolution, this instrument was utilized against it. Following the end of the Imposed War, Iran's nuclear technology hit the news headlines of the media and caught the attention of research centers as well as security-intelligence services of the West, particularly those of the United States. Since then, America has always utilized Iran's peaceful nuclear program as a pretext to panic the public opinion and the governments of the region and the world. America's efforts in this area are mainly based on the application of psychological operations to increase efficacy rather than on the existing realities. Finally, the psychological measures of the U.S. caused Iran's nuclear case to find its way to the UN Security Council and become one of the most important foreign policy issues of the Islamic Republic of Iran in the recent years. Relying on library data and media news, this research work seeks to explicate and clarify America’s PSYOPs methods against the Islamic Republic of Iran. The growth of America’s using psychological operations to increase public concern in the future is an issue that the Islamic Republic of Iran needs to consider in its media measures.

Due to the wide range of changes resulting from technological transition, under the current conditions of our contemporary world, governments can no longer be indifferent toward the public opinion of their own nations and that of other nations and the legitimacy of every policy and strategy depends upon its degree of legitimacy amid the public opinion. Hence, the countries which follow transnational interests and have the necessary economic and technology resources attempt to manipulate public opinion in order to legitimatize their policies. In the process of manipulating public opinion, idea generation and idea processing are considered a major and vital device in various stages of policy making in America. Meanwhile, one of the main targets of the U.S. idea processing system is the Islamic Republic of Iran. In this paper, an attempt will be made to introduce the U.S. idea processing system, evaluate the idea of threatening Iran at public opinion level and illustrate how propagating this idea is in conflict with the interests of the Islamic Republic of Iran.

The twenty-first century has coincided with major and various changes in different aspects of science and some key concepts such as power. Power is one of the fundamental concepts which has undergone changes in various dimensions. Today, the superior global systems are characterized with a new type of power beside the traditional forms of powers (military and economic) called soft power which follows key, strategic objectives with the lowest cost. At the same time, the age of information explosion, as one of the fundamental concepts of the recent times, has the greatest impact on the soft power arena. Thus, the convergence of the concepts of soft power and information creates an interdisciplinary field whose understanding is essential for gaining power in modern world. Presenting an overview of the concepts of soft power and information, this paper explicates the impact of information on national power and soft power.

Psychological operations have always comprised a major part of the activities of warring parties since a long time ago. In guerrilla warfare, guerrillas pay particular attention to psychological operations due to weaknesses and shortcomings related to equipment and staffing. The terrorist group PEJAK, which started its activities on the northwest borders of Iran in 2004, has resorted to every means and every method to undermine the Islamic Republic of Iran. One of the measures followed by this group is psychological operations widely utilized by it beside military actions. This group follows psychological measures at strategic, operational and tactical levels and, at each level, works toward some specific objectives which are intended to be fulfilled by taking advantage of the existing vulnerabilities in the society and within the framework of special themes. Hence, the present paper seeks to answer this question: ‘What are the main objectives and measures of the PEJAK Group in the area of psychological operations and at the strategic, operational and tactical levels?’ To answer this question, the library research method has been used and the aim is to identify and evaluate the goals and actions of this group in the field of psychological operations as well as the vulnerabilities of the Islamic Republic of Iran. Like other terrorist and rebellious groups, this group and its importance have been magnified as a result of the psychological operations.