The Psychology of Terrorism Essay

The use of terrorism started in 1795 relating to the reign of terror leaded by the French Government. The reason people become terrorist is because they see it as their only choice or is a sign for defending their religion. “The personal pathway model suggests that terrorists came from a selected, at risk population, who have suffered from early damage to their self-esteem,” (psychologist Eric D. Shaw). This explains how young adults are becoming terrorist to find themselves, also because they are not happy with who they are. Terrorist technology has changed over the course.

We are all individuals. As individuals, we do not all live the same lives and share the same interests. It is greatly because of this, there are many psychological and behavioral factors that can impact the radicalization of an individual. Not everyone is going to be as receptive to certain things as other people may be. We must understand what the factors are that can increase the likelihood of someone turning to a life of terror in order to have a more significant chance at countering them. It is important to know why someone joins an organization such as al Qaeda or a white supremacist group in order to know which

political and social circumstances; that is, terrorism involves variables that can be measured on a criminological scale. The measurable by-product can be examined through psychological factors that vacillate with political circumstances. Ross's conclusions lead to two practical considerations.

“Terrorism's particularly heinous but highly attractive means to achieve political objectives or even radically restructure political foundations is manifest within societies in all reaches of the world. While the practical application of terrorist methodologies comes across as a relatively straightforward craft, the conceptual and ideological understanding, and subsequent evaluation of its socio-political influence, implementation, and psychological impacts present difficult questions, and in some cases conceivably insurmountable obstacles” (Romaniuk 2014, para

?Psychology of Terrorism.? Center for International Research on Terrorism. 2007. http://www.terrorismresearchcenter.org/psychology-of-terrorism.html, accessed 16 Aug 2010.

The following is a brief explanation of the motivation of the Islamic Jihad Group. Included is a response to how the knowledge of the Islamic Jihad Group’s motivation might assist in planning counter terrorist strategy. Included are explanations as to how the motivations of terrorists differ from the motivations of other violent criminals and how cultural, socioeconomic, or political factors could lead a person to become a terrorist or criminal.

In the past weeks we have explored what makes up the mind of a terrorist by considering various psychological and behavioral factors of terrorism. Another factor we discussed was Osama Bin Laden: Terrorist CEO and the evolution of Bin Laden and Al-Qaeda. I will summarize categorizing the means of communication and influence they have upon advancing terrorist narratives, the psychological and behavioral factors within Al-Qaeda leadership and affiliate groups, compare and contrast his ability to communicate and exert influence upon these various audiences from the years preceding 9/11 until his death. All these factors play a part with one another in order to understand the big picture.

A multitude of factors contribute to any type of reasoning or psychological makeup of an individual; whether it is a person’s history of behavioral problems, inability to maintain a functional relationship, or in this case becoming part of a terrorist organization. In Sarah Kershaw’s “The Terrorist Mind: An Update”, we are able to see what drives a person to commit acts of terror where it is praised in a given community.

In spite of the fact that the distinctive types of terrorism may emerge for various arrangement of reasons however a portion of the real causes might be recorded as political disappointment, financial hardship, local incongruities and intercession into religious, social; and individual opportunity of the general population . Any or these may on occasion make circumstance where worldwide personal stakes discover t simple to mediate and to animate the propensities towards terrorism for further their own particular targets at the expense of honest individuals .

Terrorism is a difficult issue to understand and grasp for many people. What is even more difficult to understand is what drives an individual to become radicalized to the point of joining a terrorist organization and committing terrorist acts. While there is not specific criteria or a “cookie cutter” approach to understanding what motivates and radicalizes an individual to participate in such atrocities, there are however, several psychological and behavioral factors that have been common among these individuals. The following paper will outline some of the psychological and behavioral factors that attribute to an individual’s radicalization and eventual willingness and even perhaps

In the article “Profile of a Terrorist” by Cindy Combs, the author maps out and discusses the different causes of terrorism committed by people. Understanding and determining what drives people to terrorism is no easy task. Why do people choose to commit acts of terrorism? Why do people choose to become rebellious and wreak havoc on so many innocent civilians? Combs discusses the different types of terrorists as suggested by Frederick Hacker who was a Vienna-born psychiatrist and psychoanalyst and expert on aggression and terrorism.

There are many things can be seen in the psychology of terrorism. Unfortunately there is not good science on psychological factors of terrorism; there are theories and educated opinions (DeAngelis, 2009). The one overarching factor is the fear with which terrorism is based. By definition, terrorism is acts that cause terror by one group on to another, usually for political goals (“Terrorism”, n.d.). Why people suffer from these fears is related to their psychological behavior. Terrorist activity can be described as “fostering a sense of helplessness and hopelessness, in demonstrating the incompetence of the authorities, destroying a sense of security and safety, and in provoking inappropriate reactions from individuals and authorities.” (Alexander & Klein, 2005). Terrorists themselves are affected by psychological behavior; their own and that of others around them. They may even be affected by the behavior of victims and potential victims. Osama Bin Laden has even been known to admit that in the terrorist organization Al-Qaeda, his

This is a peer-reviewed article that will be one of the primary foundation source for the research paper. As indicated in the week four outline, it is incredibly important to understand that in order to effectively combat extreme radicalization and terrorism in general, you need to understand what creates a terrorist. After all, not all terrorists are just born that way. This article supports that point effectively. It is important to realize that profiling is a terroist is near impossible because according to Leistedt (2013), “research has not found a ‘pattern’ of psychologically among terrorists.” (p. 22)

As far as terrorism and these terrorists extensive plots against other countries, a more in depth look should go towards the social aspect of these individuals. This is a big part in the cause of terrorism. Some of the findings, through brief research, may suggest oppression is related with terrorism. Another term that could be used and may be more appropriate in this case would be the term totalism. A totalistic individual is one who sees themselves as being oppressed, and basically will justify his or her actions through their own self-pity. This perhaps may be a cynical definition, but the average person who is picked on by a tall muscular bully may not always resent tall muscular people. On the other hand, another individual as opposed to a totalistic individual will not forgive nor forget this type of person. They may also be extremely prone to making horrific attacks against these types of people.

In both examples mentioned above, there are exact motivating factors. In both cases the motivating factors are ideology and religion. But there are also many other factors which make people become terrorists and take guns in their hands or blow themselves