Advocating for Psychological Factors in The National Cyber Incident Response Plan (NCIRP — 2025)

Abstract

Irrespective of the field, crisis situations demand human resilience and cognitive acuity to respond immediately without losing the big picture. The update to the National Cyber Incident Response Plan (NCIRP) presents a significant opportunity to incorporate human-centered approaches, which remain largely unexplored in the current draft. Insights from psychological and cognitive research underline the critical role of human behavior and cognition in cybersecurity incidents. Drawing on the studies “Developing Decision Support for Cybersecurity Threat and Incident Managers,” “Time Pressure in Human Cybersecurity Behavior,” “Keeping the Human in the Loop,” and “Cognitive Security,” this commentary advocates integrating psychological principles and cognitive frameworks into the NCIRP. This inclusion can address key challenges like decision-making under stress, time pressure, and user vulnerabilities, enhancing the plan’s effectiveness by acknowledging the human factor.

Commentary

The NCIRP update is a vital opportunity to address human-centered factors in cybersecurity incident response. Despite its technical and organizational focus, the current draft neglects the psychological and cognitive dimensions that shape incident management outcomes. Research has consistently demonstrated that human decision-making and behavior underlie many cybersecurity breaches and incident response inefficiencies (Chowdhury et al., 2020). Therefore, integrating human factors into the NCIRP would strengthen its foundation and improve resilience against cyber threats.

Time Pressure and Decision-Making

Research highlights that time pressure significantly impacts human cybersecurity behavior, leading to increased reliance on heuristic (System 1) thinking at the expense of deliberate (System 2) processing (Chowdhury et al., 2020). This shift under stress compromises decision quality, resulting in behaviors like bypassing protocols or ignoring security policies. The NCIRP could mitigate these risks by incorporating countermeasures such as training for critical thinking under time pressure and decision-support tools tailored to high-stress environments.

Cognitive Security and Human Collaboration

Cognitive science can optimize the interplay between humans and cybersecurity systems. The Cognitive Security model emphasizes integrating cognitive processes with technological tools, ensuring that security analysts remain central to decision-making while leveraging automation for repetitive tasks (Andrade & Yoo, 2019). The NCIRP should adopt similar principles, focusing on enhancing situational awareness and enabling effective human-machine collaboration during incidents.

Keeping Humans in the Loop

The importance of human involvement in cybersecurity operations is underscored by the need for awareness and contextual understanding (Debb, 2021). Training programs that foster behavioral awareness, coupled with a focus on usability and accessibility, can improve compliance and reduce vulnerabilities. The NCIRP could include provisions for regular, scenario-based training that accounts for diverse user needs, strengthening the human firewall against cyber threats.

Bridging Psychological Gaps in Incident Response

The absence of psychological insights into the NCIRP is a missed opportunity. Critical thinking memory aids, as proposed by the study on decision support systems, could guide responders through the cognitive complexities of incident management. Additionally, fostering a culture of accountability and engagement through leadership communication and psychological safety could bolster team performance during incidents.

Recommendations

1. Training and Tools: Incorporate cognitive-behavioral training programs and decision-support tools to address stress and cognitive overload.
2. Role-Based Enhancements: Define roles for situational awareness oversight, ensuring psychological and cognitive elements are prioritized.
3. Communication Strategies: Develop protocols emphasizing clear, human-centered communication during incidents.
4. Human-Machine Collaboration: Leverage cognitive security models to optimize human and machine roles in incident response.

By recognizing the human element as a cornerstone of cybersecurity resilience, the NCIRP can set a global standard for integrating psychological and cognitive dimensions into incident response frameworks.

References

• Chowdhury, N. H., Adam, M. T. P., & Teubner, T. (2020). Time pressure in human cybersecurity behavior: Theoretical framework and countermeasures. Computers & Security, 97, 101963
• Debb, S. M. (2021). Keeping the Human in the Loop: Awareness and Recognition of Cybersecurity Within Cyberpsychology. Cyberpsychology, Behavior, and Social Networking, 24(9), 581–583
• Andrade, R. O., & Yoo, S. G. (2019). Cognitive security: A comprehensive study of cognitive science in cybersecurity. Journal of Information Security and Applications, 48, 102352