Research areas

Maritime Security

Jessica Larsen conducts research on maritime security. This includes how the suppression of maritime crime, geopolitical tensions and hybrid threats at sea affect the freedom of navigation. Focus is on international cooperation, forms of maritime law enforcement and authority at sea, hereunder in the relation between regional and international actors.

In 2023, Jessica Larsen published a book based on extensive fieldwork in Seychelles and onboard a Danish warship about the legal practices and ambiguities produces in international efforts to suppress Somali piracy: Counter-Piracy Law in Pratice. An Ethnography of International Security Governance

Policy analysis

In addition to Jessica Larsen’s research, she also conducts policy analysis for the Danish Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Ministry of Defence, particularly on Denmark's engagements on maritime seucirty, stabilisation and capacity-building. She covers questions related to Danish foreign and security policy and EU security policy.

Methodology and theory

Jessica Larsen’ research applies an ethnographic methodology, meaning that analysis draws on fieldwork, interviews and participation in the field. Her theoretical interests lie in the conceptually productive juncture between theory and practice.