This paper brings a systems engineering approach to policymaking in the context of violent radicalization. We test strategies to combat terrorism under the premise that violent radicalization is a complex system of social contagion resulting in terrorism. We built a simulation using DIME-PMESII military standards to replicate a terror contagion…
Background This report presents the findings of a systematic review of research on how, and under what circumstances, trauma might be implicated in individual journeys into, and out of, violent extremism. It builds on previous work carried out by the research team on these dynamics, including a scoping review of…
AI tools have become essential given the vast amount of content posted daily. On average, every minute Facebook users share 694,000 stories, X (formerly Twitter) users post 360,000 posts, Snapchat users send 2.7 million snaps and YouTube users upload over 500 hours of new content. The volume of data generated…
Snipers have gained increasing prominence in modern warfare and insurgencies, both in actual combat and in military propaganda. Research on snipers, however, has remained largely limited to their strategic role in Western professional armed forces. This article provides the first in-depth analysis of the strategic and cultural dimensions of sniper…
The intricate connection between violent and nonviolent extremism has been a source of debate among radicalization scholars. Some suggest that despite their non-military tactics, Islamists share ideological commonalities with jihadists. Others emphasize the unbridgeable rifts between non-violent and violent Islamists. Rather than simply viewing Islamism and Salafism either as a gateway to…
The growing evidence base of risk factors for violent extremism demonstrates overlaps with different types of gender-based violent behaviours, such as intimate partner violence, sexual assault, and sexual harassment. Each of these manifestations of violence are, to a varying extent, underpinned by misogynistic and hypermasculine attitudes and behaviours. The present analysis aims…
A growing body of research suggests that an individual’s willingness to fight and die for groups is rooted in the fusion of personal and group identities, especially when the group is threatened, violence is condoned, and the group’s enemies are dehumanised or demonised. Here we consider whether the language used…
Violent extremism risk assessments of individuals suspected or convicted of terrorism are relevant for legal decisions, in prison and probation settings, and in inter-professional risk collaboration. These risk assessment reports by professionals should be applicable to and usable for the different judicial contexts. Informal and formal clinical practice evaluations, in…
Online gaming represents one of the biggest and fastest growing industries globally with over 900 million gamers. Its growth is not only attributed to the development of online games and communities, but also to the game hosting and adjacent communications platforms that have been specifically designed for gamers and gaming,…
This toolkit is providing you with practical insights and suggestions on how to potentially work with a person who believes in conspiracy narratives. The aims of this toolkit are to explain what a conspiracy narrative exactly is, what a conspiracy narrative may offer to someone and how to help them…
In this article, I propose a theoretical framework that provides a new perspective on the variation and contestation of P/CVE (Preventing and Countering Violent Extremism) policies in the world. Drawing on the public policy literature, I argue that P/CVE emerged in response to the policy problem of terrorism, but then…
Violent extremist organisations (VEOs) use social media platforms to promote extremist content and coordinate agendas. The use of digital platforms to disseminate information and coordinate activities by VEOs in Nigeria has grown considerably in recent years. This report analyses the adoption of social media before and after attacks by Boko…
