Understanding concepts in the defence in depth strategy

The defence in depth strategy is a fundamental principle in the physical protection of the assets of an organisation. The robustness of the strategy has allowed it to be applied to a range of situations where assets need to be protected. This study seeks to examine the understanding of novice learners´ perceptions of the defence in depth principles through the knowledge structure approach to concepts in the strategy. The multidimensional scaling (MDS) statistical technique has been applied to dissimilarity measures on a range of facilities according to the defence in depth functions of deterrence, detection, delay, and response. The barriers that correspond to these functions are considered as the analysis standard for the set of facilities. Pre- and post-instruction knowledge structures for the defence in depth functions of deterrence, detection, delay and response have been produced for novice learners. The knowledge structures for these same functions were produced for an expert group in understanding defence in depth. A comparison of knowledge structures for novice learners and the expert group indicates that novice learners knowledge structures become more like the experts structures with instruction.