Psychology Of Terrorism

1.) Asa Don Brown, the author of “Desensitization of Terrorism,” focuses on how the influence of the media and social media have desensitized us when it comes to terrorist attacks. Brown directs the article toward an audience who questions why they are no longer as surprised by terrorist attacks when they occur as they used to be. This seems like an extremely odd feeling to have when several people are killed and hundreds are hurt, however, it is the strange reality these days. Terrorist attacks have been happening for years and years now and while we would love to just stop them from occurring, this is blatantly impossible to achieve. He emphasizes in the article, the idea that when terrorist attacks and the terrorists themselves are

The way terrorist groups has been communicating and recruiting new has been changing, due to the emerging use

The first factor is that of victimization. Victimization is when an individual feels as though he or she has fallen victim to something, such as a physical, psychological, or financial harm. Individuals who are victimized feel as though they are missing something and are eager to be a part of something bigger than themselves, and terrorist organizations can fill those needs. An example of how victimization can attribute to the radicalization of an individual is if an individual lost family or friends in a drone strike conducted by the United States of America. The family and friends killed in the drone strike leaves the individual feeling scared, angry, and sad with a hunger for revenge. A terrorist organization such as Al Qaeda could be very intriguing to that individual because of their mission to wage war against and destroy the United States of America. Victimization is a dangerous factor because it can easily feed into other factors and victims can easily be manipulated into believing certain things, one of those things being religion.

It is claimed that the relationship between terrorism and media is well-researched. It is suggested that in Spencer, A. (2012) researchers struggled in this central question. The focus upon how the western world portrays the information of terrorist related incidents. It has been identified in Spencer, A. (2012) that the fear or terrorism needs to be displayed over social media for example. The terrorist wants not just their victims to suffer. The result of the wider world and the public being informed allows the pressures of insecurity within the public perception. One quote which makes sense of this statement is the

This paper explores some of the techniques and tools that are used by terrorist leaders to try to influence and change the mindsets of people. Political and religious motived techniques that are used by terrorist leaders are discussed in the paper. The paper also discuses how terrorist leaders have used the internet to gain support, influence, and recruit new members,

That call to action can come in many forms of media and to a global audience. “Terrorist recruitment videos, often released online, have been tailored to appeal to various audiences. A propaganda video, which can still be watched on YouTube of captured U.S. soldier, Bowe R. Bergdahl, compares what seems to be his good treatment under al-Qaeda, to those of U.S.-run prisoner of war camps” (Philipp).

A main misconception of terrorism especially in today’s society is that, society views terrorism as faith- based acts of violence, when it may not be the case. Terrorism is an illegitimate mean to achieve a cause; it is a willful defense of an ideology or a political group. These acts by sub state actors who violently target non-combatants to communicate a political a message. Terrorist are neither crazy nor

Psychology of Terrorism, as stated in its title, focuses on analyzing the psychology of terrorism. It is in short a compilation of many essays that are conveniently separated under particular themes such as the psychology of terrorism, terrorism, and the psychological effects of it. The last two sections can be summarized on how to combat terrorism. I believe they will all be invaluable contributions to my essay. Some of the main aspects include a general idea of what exactly is terrorism and why it is such an effective political weapon against a nation, the immediate and long-term psychological effects of terrorism, and the role the media plays in collateral damage in further amplifying the psychological damage of the already vulnerable victims of terrorism. The importance of this book is to provide

Great post this week, it was very interesting. The accessibility to the internet has definitely enhanced the capabilities of terrorist organizations to be able to reach individuals that otherwise would not have been possible in the past. In the United States most people have smart phones that gives easy access to the internet to millions of people. While terrorist organizations know that a large quantity of people will not be pleased or interested in seeing their radicalized content online, they also know that a small part may find it appealing. Therefore, the larger the audience, the more opportunities they have to recruit other people. That is why terrorist organizations are publishing content online in many different languages in an effort

In order to make a subtle but significant impact, terrorists have adapted media to their advantage

In terms of proselytizing, the Internet is useful in advancing propaganda material to Muslims within their own national boundaries and throughout Western countries such as Europe, London, United States, and Canada. The internet is being used for a wide variety of applications such as radicalization, recruitment, and planning. Online Islamic magazines, articles, messages, and files are being transmitted to every part of the globe. By late 2007, there were at least 100 English-speaking Islamic websites intended to recruit Muslims in Western countries (Michael 2009, 143). Al Qaeda can build

To first understand what the complexity of the psychology of terrorist group recruitment is, the complication of 'what is terrorism' must first be understood for a full understanding of the phenomenon. There are many different definitions of terrorism and for the importance of simplicity the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI) terrorism definition will be analyzed. According to the FBI, terrorism is defined by 18 U.S.C. And categorized as domestic and international terrorism. Domestic terrorism is defined as, “activities with the following three characteristics: (1) Involve acts dangerous to human life that violate federal or state law; (2) Appear intended (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; (ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or (iii) to affect the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination. or kidnapping; and (3) Occur primarily within the territorial jurisdiction of the U.S.” (FBI, 2014). Whereas, International terrorism is defined as, “activities with the following three characteristics: (1) Involve violent acts or acts dangerous to human life that violate federal or state law; (2) Appear to be intended (i) to intimidate or coerce a civilian population; (ii) to influence the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion; or (iii) to affect the conduct of a government by

As I look at the psychological reasoning behind terrorism it amazes me, because I always thought that every terrorist was more than likely mentally-ill and didn’t have any family support or no one that cared and sort of went off edge and wanted to hurt innocent people as an outlet, whether they were risking their lives or not, and in some cases that might be true, but not all. As I read the critical thinking statement in my psychology book I find out that most terrorist have plans and they process what they are doing and they want to hurt their own communities and this nation, and to get help they win over people’s hearts and minds and people believe the things that they are being told and go along with the sheer evil plans. Also terrorist

Media also helps Al Qaeda in advancing its causes especially when the media gives extensive coverage on targets that have been bombed. Their taped messages can be broadcasted to millions of listeners with the help of the media. Most media outlets unwittingly spread Al Qaeda's messages by covering their activities and proclamations. Some media organizations falsely think that by covering Al Qaeda's activities they delegitimize them. Internet is one of the media that Al Qaeda now uses to its own advantage (Anti-Defamation League, 2012).

You have probably heard and may have used the word terrorism. When we did, it had an image in our mind. When other people used the word (terrorism) they had their own images or meanings for this term. As a result, terrorism means different things to different people. The nature of terrorism has changed over the course of history. Violent activity called terrorism at one point in time was called war. Liberation or crime in another period of history. The media has come to play an important part in some forms of terrorism. Religion has come to play and important part in some forms of terrorism. (Terrorism & Homeland Security pg. 3)