ECONIS Select – The Psychology of Terrorism

07/2010

Selected for the Global Economic Symposium 2010

In all parts of the world the processes of globalization have produced winners and losers. Socioeconomic disparities, which exist not only between nations but also inside the societies of all states, are regarded as the major cause for political or political-religious radicalization. Today, the most extreme form of this radicalization is represented by terrorist organizations. The transnational, non-state nature of terrorism and insurgencies has evolved into one of the most prominent threats for international security, stability, and prosperity.

Since it has proven impossible to counter terrorism solely with physical means, it became widely acknowledged that the threat of terrorism has to be also addressed on the psychological level. This means, in general terms, to reduce the support for terrorist organizations in societies.

Extremists generate support for their cause in socially and economically disadvantaged groups prone to political radicalisation. The supporters not only become the recruiting pool for new volunteers willing to kill and die for the cause but—maybe more important—represent the primary source of legitimacy for the extremists.

Thus, since it is almost impossible to cut off the malign influence of extremist ideologies on already politically radicalised groups, it is necessary to reduce political radicalisation in the first place.

Methods to undermine radical ideologies and to prevent disadvantaged social groups from joining violent extremist organizations have to accompany today’s counter-terrorism and counterinsurgency strategies. According to most scholars and practitioners this is the path to a truly comprehensive and lasting approach of addressing the challenge of terrorism in the 21st century. However, how to achieve this in practice remains unclear:

• What are successful recent long-term counterterrorism/ counterinsurgency strategies of selected states?
• In which ways can states (or international organizations) integrate private companies, NGOs, and the media in long-term counterterrorism and counter-insurgency strategies?
• Is a fusion of state and private actors a reasonable/ functional approach in the first place?
• How can private companies and NGOs operating in countries like Afghanistan and Iraq positively affect the “hearts and minds” of the local population and thus actively contribute to ongoing counterinsurgency and statebuilding operations?
• How can globally operating companies use their influence in developing (and least developed countries) to reduce political radicalization beyond the simple formula of “jobs, jobs, jobs”?
• How can the media and private companies undermine or “disenchant” extremist ideologies?

Literature selected from our database ECONIS:

• Title: What makes a terrorist: economics and the roots of terrorism; Lionel Robbins lectures / Alan B. Krueger
  Published: Princeton, NJ [u.a.]: Princeton Univ. Press, c 2007
• Title: Do working men rebel?: insurgency and unemployment in Iraq and the Philippines / Eli Berman; Joseph Felter; Jacob N. Shapiro
  Published: Cambridge, Mass., 2009
  Subject heading: Young workers / Male workers / Social conditions / Unemployment / Political violence / Iraq / Philippines / 2001-2007
  Link: http://www.nber.org/papers/w15547.pdf
  Request info: - Available
• Article: What makes a homegrown terrorist?: human capital and participation in domestic Islamic terrorist groups in the USA / Alan B. Krueger
  In: Economics letters. - Amsterdam [u.a.]: Elsevier, ISSN 0165-1765, ZDB-ID 7172102. - Bd. 101.2008, 3, S. 293-396
  Subject heading: Political violence / Human capital / Theory / United States
• Article: The life satisfaction approach to valuing public goods: the case of terrorism / Bruno S. Frey; Simon Luechinger; Alois Stutzer
  In: Public choice. - Dordrecht: Springer, ISSN 0048-5829, ZDB-ID 2075970. - Bd. 138.2009, 3/4, S. 317-345
  Subject heading: Cost-benefit analysis / Quality of life / Public Good / Non-market valuation / Political violence / Theory
• Article: What directs a terrorist? / Karen Pittel and Dirk T. G. Rübbelke
  In: Defence and peace economics. - Helsington: Carfax Publ., ISSN 1043-0717, ZDB-ID 11846719. - Bd. 17.2006, 4, S. 311-328
  Subject heading: Political violence / |stw| Public Good / |stw| Suicide / |stw| Rational behaviour / |stw| Theory
• Article: Terrorism from the rational choice point of view / Bruno S. Frey
  In: Rational choice. - Wiesbaden: VS, Verl. für Sozialwiss., ISBN 3-531-15545-8. - 2008, S. 211-222
  Subject heading : Political violence / Rational behaviour / Theory
• Article: Poverty, political freedom, and the roots of terrorism / by Alberto Abadie
  In: The American economic review. - Nashville, Tenn.: American Economic Assoc., ISSN 0002-8282, ZDB-ID 203590x. - Bd. 96.2006, 2, S. 50-56
  Subject heading: Political violence / |stw| Poverty / |stw| Freedom / |stw| Estimation / |stw| World
• Title: Counter-terrorism, aid and civil society: before and after the war on terror / Jude Howell and Jeremy Lind
  Published: Basingstoke, Hampshire [u.a.]: Palgrave Macmillan, 2009
• Article: International terrorism: causes, consequences and cures / Graham Bird, S. Brock Blomberg and Gregory D. Hess
  In: The world economy. - Oxford: Wiley-Blackwell, ISSN 0378-5920, ZDB-ID 1328967. - Bd. 31.2008, 2, S. 255-274
  Subject heading: Political violence / International / World
• Title: The roles of foreign aid and education in the war on terror / by Jean-Paul Azam and Véronique Thelen
  Published: 07 Apr. 2007
  Subject heading: Political violence / Political conflict / Development Aid / Educational institution / Estimation / World
  Link: http://idei.fr/doc/wp/2007/foreign_aid.pdf
• Title: Making governance work against radicalisation / Aziz Al-Azmeh
  Published: Copenhagen: CDR, 2006
• Title: The origins of terrorism cross-country estimates on socio-economic determinants of terrorism / Andreas Freytag; Jens J. Krüger; Daniel Meierrieks; Friedrich Schneider
  Published: 2009
  Link: http://www.econstor.eu/dspace/bitstream/10419/31767/1/593202562.PDF
• Title: Patterns of force: system strength, terrorism and civil war / by Andreas Freytag; Daniel Meierrieks; Angela Münch; Friedrich Schneider
  Published: Jena: Univ. [u.a.], 2010
• Title: Women and radicalization / Margot Badran
  Published: 2006
  Link: http://www.diis.dk/graphics/Publications/WP2006/DIIS%20WP%202006-5.web.pdf
• Title: Studying violent radicalization in Europe I: the potential contribution of social movement theory / Anja Dalgaard-Nielsen
  Published: 2008
  Link:
  http://www.humansecuritygateway.com/documents/DIIS_ViolentRadicalization_ SocioPsychological_Psychological.pdf
• Title: Studying violent radicalization in Europe II: the potential contribution of socio-psychological and psycholigical approaches / Anja Dalgaard-Nielsen
  Published: 2008
• Article: Make law, not war?: on the political economy of violence and appropriation / Benedikt Korf
  In: Institutions and sustainability. - Dordrecht: Springer, ISBN 978-1-402-09689-1. - 2009, S. 43-60
  Subject heading: Civil war / Political violence / Legal order / Homeland security / Sri Lanka
• Title: Rational extremism: the political economy of radicalism / Ronald Wintrobe
  Published: Cambridge [u.a.]: Cambridge Univ. Press, 2006
• Title: Hard targets: theory and evidence on suicide attacks / Eli Berman; David D. Laitin
  Published: Cambridge, Mass.: National Bureau of Economic Research, 2005
  Subject heading : Political violence / |stw| Suicide / |stw| Theory
• Title: Roads to militant radicalization interviews with five former prepetrators of politicallys motivated organized violence / Jon A. Olsen
  Published: København: Dansk Institut for Internationale Studier, 2009
• Article: Terrorism against American citizens in Africa: related to poverty? / Carlos Pestana Barros, Jo~ao Ricardo Faria, Luis A. Gil-Alana
  In: Journal of policy modeling. - New York, NY [u.a.]: Elsevier North-Holland, ISSN 0161-8938, ZDB-ID 4355325. - Bd. 30.2008, 1, S. 55-69
  Subject heading: Political violence / Americans / Poverty / Africa / 1978-2002
• Title: The economics of terrorism and counter-terrorism: a survey (Part I) / Friedrich Schneider; Tilman Brück; Daniel Meierrieks
  Published: München: CESifo, 2010
• Title: The economics of terrorism and counter-terrorism: a survey (Part II) / Friedrich Schneider; Tilman Brück; Daniel Meierrieks
  Published: München: CESifo, 2010
• Title: International terrorism, political instability and the escalation effect / Nauro F. Campos and Martin Gassebner
  Published: Zürich: KOF, 2009
  Subject heading: Political violence / International / Political stability / World / 1968-2003
  Links:
  http://dx.doi.org/10.3929/ethz-a- 005778530
  http://e-collection.ethbib.ethz.ch/view/ eth:41603
  http://e-collection.ethbib.ethz.ch/eserv/ eth:41603/eth-41603-01.pdf http://kofportal.kof.ethz.ch/publications/ download/1355/wp_220.pdf
• Article: Selling terror: the symbolization and positioning of Jihad / Nicholas J. O'Shaughnessy; Paul R. Baines
  In: Marketing theory. - London [u.a.]: Sage, ISSN 1470-5931, ZDB-ID 22015401. - Bd. 9.2009, 2, S. 227-241
  Subject heading: Political violence / Islam
• Title: International terrorism, political instability and the escalation effect / Nauro F. Campos and Martin Gassebner
  Published: London: Centre for Economic Policy Research, 2009
  Subject heading: Political violence / International / Political stability / World / 1968-2003
• Article: Political violence and underdevelopment / Cristina Bodea and Ibrahim A. Elbadawi
  In: Journal of African economies. - Oxford: Univ. Press, ISSN 0963-8024, ZDB-ID 11065680. - Bd. 17.2008, Suppl.2, S. 50-96
  Subject heading: Political violence / Economic development / Africa
• Article: Security and development in the post-9/11 world / John McKay
  In: International development. - Basingstoke, Hampshire [u.a.]: Pagrave Macmillan, ISBN 0-230-57341-X. - 2008, S. 297-319
  Subject heading: Economic development / Development Policy / Political violence / Security Policy / Developing countries
• Article: Immigration and Muslim extremists in the Post-9/11 World / Salim Mansur
  In: Immigration policy and the terrorist threat in Canada and the United States. - Vancouver, BC, ISBN 978-0-88975-235-1. - 2008, S. 21-35
  Subject heading: Immigration / Immigration law / Refugees / Radicalism / Islamic / Political violence / Homeland security / Foreign workers / Canada / United States
• Article: The political economy of jihad and the war on terror / Joe Wallis
  In: Journal of interdisciplinary economics. - Bicester, Oxon: AB Acad. Publ., ISSN 0260-1079, ZDB-ID 9016624. - Bd. 18.2007, 4, S. 317-332
  Subject heading: Political violence / Radicalism / Islam / Economics