Commander Senior Grade Jostein Mattingsdal, PhD, is Research Director of the Black Sea Battle Lab at the Norwegian Defence University College. He completed his PhD in Operational Psychology at the University of Bergen and has been awarded the Norwegian War Medal (Krigsmedaljen), the U.S. Army Commendation Medal with Combat Device, and the Afghan Police Medal of Valor. He recently led bilateral Ukrainian–Norwegian research projects on adaptive command and control in contemporary maritime security environments. He has published peer‑reviewed work across military psychology, leadership, and security studies, and contributes as a reviewer and subject‑matter expert to defense‑related research initiatives. His teaching disciplines include decision making, ethics, special operations, and leadership in high‑risk environments, and his research interests include operational behavior, small‑unit dynamics, and crisis‑driven command frameworks. Keywords: operational psychology; military leadership; decision making under risk; special operations forces; maritime security; command and control; small‑unit behavior; crisis response; security studies; high‑risk environments.