| Summary/Abstract |
In democracies the efficiency of a national security institution depends significantly on the way its role and mission are perceived by the intelligentsia and the general public. “Social capital,” an asset for all institutions, conditions their efficient functioning in the limits of the law. Consequently, the intelligence culture, understood as a set of explicit and implicit attitudes and behaviors related to intelligence which influence social perceptions, is fundamental for allowing the public to trust and support their country's intelligence services, given that trust is directly correlated with the efficiency of national security institutions. Political as well as security community legitimacy is acquired, preserved, validated, or eroded through actions, just as their public image is built through adequate communication policies.
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