In international relations, do offensive cyber operations trigger escalation? We need to put greater emphasis on understanding human behaviour and cognition to fully conceptualise the escalatory risk of offensive cyber operations. Offensive cyber operations are often thought about from a technical sense, with a focus on the software and hardware required to develop and deploy attacks. Yet, the ultimate goal of offensive cyber operations is often cognitive: we are aiming to influence human decision makers. This also impacts assessments of how escalatory offensive cyber operations may be: effects we would not consider to be escalatory may be perceived differently by adversaries.