Sam Forsythe

Sam Forsythe is a Researcher at the Peace Research Institute Frankfurt (PRIF) in the Science Communication Department since 2024, having previously served as a Doctoral Researcher in the International Security Department since 2019. He maintains dual affiliation with Goethe University Frankfurt through the Cluster of Excellence 'Normative Orders'. His work critically examines intersections of disinformation, intelligence, and cyber security within international relations frameworks, grounded in political theory and philosophy of science.

Education:

• Master of Arts in War Studies, King's College London (2017-2018)
• Bachelor of Arts in War Studies and Philosophy, King's College London (2014-2017)
• Master studies in Film & Fine Art, State College of Fine Arts - Städelschule Frankfurt/M (2012)

Forsythe's research centers on epistemic struggles in international security contexts, analyzing how conflicts over knowledge production shape state behavior from Cold War secrecy mechanisms to contemporary cyber deception operations. His methodology integrates philosophical inquiry with empirical security studies, particularly examining adversarial abduction in intelligence analysis and disinformation's role in arms control regimes.

His 2020-2024 publications reveal a cohesive intellectual trajectory exploring secrecy-technology interfaces in global politics, with recurring themes including disinformation in arms control verification, logic of deception in cyber conflict, and societal impacts of state secrecy. This body of work demonstrates consistent interdisciplinary synthesis across political science, philosophy, and security studies.

No formal student advisory roles or grant funding details are documented in available sources.

Forsythe contributes to PRIF's Science Communication Department and International Security Department through the 'Deception & Inquiry in International Security' project, which investigates epistemic struggle logic across historical and digital conflict domains. His Cluster of Excellence affiliation at Goethe University Frankfurt involves collaborative research on normative frameworks in evolving global security architectures.