In addition to carrying out research and related activities, the institute advises the Government of Norway in its areas of expertise and has some official emergency management functions at the national level.

While organised as an independent limited company, it remains an affiliated institute of the University of Oslo[2] and cooperates closely with the Department of Psychology and the Faculty of Medicine, where several of its research professors also hold professorial chairs.

NKVTS has its roots in the military and disaster psychiatry research of the University of Oslo and the Norwegian Armed Forces Joint Medical Services from the 1950s.

Through Sund's efforts Norway became "an international pioneer in the research on mass killings, war, catastrophes, accidents and all forms of violence.

In 1978 the Division of Disaster Psychiatry was established as a formal unit within both the university and the Norwegian Armed Forces Joint Medical Services, with Sund as its director.

Through Sund's efforts Norway became "an international pioneer in the research on mass killings, war, catastrophes, accidents and all forms of violence.

[1] Nora Sveaass, then research director for refugee health and forced migration at NKVTS, was elected as a member of the United Nations Committee against Torture in 2005.

Since its inception, it has conducted a series of highly sophisticated studies focusing on a wide array of topics, including the prevalence and impact of different forms of violence and abuse among children and adults, mental health treatment of posttraumatic stress disorder and other trauma-related problems, and how best to implement and incorporate evidence-based interventions practices into community service agencies.