Journal for Deradicalization
Not a member yet
320 research outputs found
Sort by
Reviewing the Role of the Internet in Radicalization Processes
Get PDFThis review presents the existing research on the role of the Internet in radicalization processes. Using a systematic literature search strategy, our paper yields 88 studies on the role of the Internet in a) right-wing extremism and b) radical jihadism. Available studies display a predominant interest in the characteristics of radical websites and a remarkable absence of a user-centred perspective. They show that extremist groups make use of the Internet to spread right wing or jihadist ideologies, connect like-minded others in echo chambers and cloaked websites, and address particularly marginalized individuals of a society, with specific strategies for recruitment. Existing studies have thus far not sufficiently examined the users of available sites, nor have they studied the causal mechanisms that unfold at the intersection between the Internet and its users. The present review suggests avenues for future research, drawing on media and violence research and research on social identity and deindividuation effects in computer-mediated communication
Trusting the Mistrusted: Norwegian Social Workers’ Strategies in Preventing Radicalization and Violent Extremism
Get PDFSocial workers are a part of the wider counter-terrorism efforts in many European countries, such as the United Kingdom, Denmark, Sweden, Norway, and Belgium. While there are several theoretical and discursive studies on social workers’ involvement in preventing violent extremism, few studies have explored and analyzed how these prevention workers understand radicalization and the strategies and approaches they employ. This paper addresses this research gap with findings from a qualitative study that utilized data from 17 individual in-depth interviews and two focus-group interviews of experienced social workers doing indicated prevention work against violent extremism in Norway. Goffman’s frame analysis and Weber and Carter’s theory on the construction of trust are applied to the findings. A thematic analysis found that, first, the participants frame radicalization cases in the same way they do other cases—as a social problem. Second, a two-way process of trust was revealed, as a critical component in their work is creating openings for dialogue about values and ideology. Contrary to other studies, this paper finds that social workers manage this work as close to “business as usual.” Also, it reveals that well-established strategies in social work, such as client-directed practice, Socratic questioning, and motivational interviewing, potentially play an important role in face-to-face prevention work against radicalization and violent extremism
Linkages as a Lens: An Exploration of Strategic Communications in P/CVE.
Get PDFStrategic communications for the purpose of countering violent extremism have become widespread in recent years, especially given the communications revolution which has amplified the messages of violent extremists and those that wish to counter them. Despite this, there is little-to-no research which collects message data and analyses its design in a systematic way. In this article, we collect data from 10 social media multi-message campaigns and undertake an exploratory analysis of their design using a methodology developed from Ingram’s “Linkage-based” framework for countering militant Islamist propaganda. Our findings include: a prevalence towards highlighting the atrocities of violent extremist groups rather than strategies which challenge their competence; a priority to messages which seize the narrative agenda; differing emotional or rational pulls depending on the language in which the message is delivered; a range of different tactics employed depending on the target audience; as well as a wide range of deployments of different themes of positive and negative messages. We offer a number of possible explanations for these findings, before undertaking a cluster analysis of the data to aid the construction of Weberian “ideal type” campaigns, which offer a contribution to the field for the purposes of future research and exposition
Emotional Effects of Terroristic Communication: Between Professional Propaganda and Media Coverage
Get PDFLike no other terroristic organization, the Islamic State anchors forms of direct communication in its communication strategy. Although classical mass media still serve as multipliers in order to spread fear, modern terrorists increasingly focus on social media to address relevant recipients. Spreading their messages via mass media, terroristic communicators have to accept balancing media coverage: the classical media framing. With forms of direct communication however they are able to set own strategic communicator frames and narratives. The question arises whether these messages have different effects on recipients than corresponding media reports. In this article we analyze the effects of different forms of terroristic communication on the recipients’ emotions using an experimental design. The results indicate that strategic communicator frames are able to reinforce negative emotions. However, it could be observed that the recipients’ political knowledge and thematic interest are able to reduce the terrorists’ main target: fear.The article was written in German
Investigating Reclaim Australia and Britain First’s Use of Social Media: Developing a New Model of Imagined Political Communities Online
Get PDFAgainst a backdrop of widespread concern regarding the extreme right’s increasing use of social media and using a combination of quantitative and qualitative linguistic techniques, this paper reports the results of the first systematic analysis of how two extreme right groups (Britain First and Reclaim Australia) construct themselves as sui generis ‘imagined political communities’ on social media (Facebook and Twitter). Analysis of a circa 5-million-word dataset reveals that both groups strategically mobilise a number of topical news events (relative to their country) and systematically denigrate (‘other’) immigrants and Muslims. It also reveals that Reclaim Australia favours more aggressive stances than Britain First towards targeted out-groups. The relative salience and inter-relations between the features that form these groups’ imagined political communities differ significantly from those proposed by pre-digital era notions of imagined political communities. Thus, this study proposes a new model of social—media based imagined political communities for extreme right groups in which developing boundaries against perceived threats posed by othered groups (Muslims and immigrants) emerges as the main pillar
Militant Extremist Mindset in Post-conflict Regions of the Balkans
Get PDFThis study explores the structure of Militant Extremist Mindset (MEM) within a sample of participants living in areas with enhanced risk of intergroup conflict. We were also interested in comparing members of three different ethnic groups (Serbs, Albanians, and Bosniaks) on MEM measures. A short version of the MEM scale was created for future use. We found that the factorial structure of MEM was replicated in the sample composed of people from both sides of a conflict. Ethnic groups did not differ significantly on the Grudge component of MEM. Group differences were pronounced on the Pro-violence and Utopianism factors. Albanians scored higher than Bosniaks and Serbs on these two dimensions. However, significant differences were obtained on the Ethos of Conflict (EOC) factor when groups of Serbs living within and outside areas of recent conflict were compared
Exploring the capabilities of Prevent in addressing radicalisation in cyberspace within Higher Education
Get PDFThe Counter Terrorism and Security Act (2015) introduced a binding duty on public sector bodies in the United Kingdom (UK), including education, to have ‘due regard to the need to prevent people from being drawn into terrorism’. The Prevent duty has become widely controversial in the Higher Education (HE) sector with questions as to whether it contravenes academic freedom and freedom of speech.This research seeks to identify how Prevent may be applied to cyberspace to reduce risk of students being radicalised online at universities. Through semi-structured interviews (N= 16) with individuals working in Prevent and HE, attention is given to the capability of monitoring and filtering website content, which must be considered by universities as part of Prevent compliance. In addition, non-technical methods of reducing radicalisation in cyberspace are explored. Consideration is given to building students’ resilience to challenging information they see online through developing counter-narrative content for social media platforms. With students developing counter-narrative content themselves, specifically addressing vulnerability drivers to radicalisation, universities can enhance compliance with Prevent and create counter extremist content which can be used in cyberspace both in and outside of HE
Evaluation of a School Campaign to Reduce Hatred
Get PDFCombating violent extremism can involve organizing Peer-to-Peer (P2P) preventing violent extremism (PVE) programs and campaigns. In recent years, hundreds of school campaigns have been launched around the world but very few have been evaluated. In this manuscript, we present the results of the evaluation of one of these initiatives. Study objectives consisted of: 1) Assessing the impact of the campaign in increasing students’ exposure to messages of acceptance and decreasing exposure to hate messages in the school environment, 2) Assess the impact of the campaign in improving students’ attitudes towards ethnocultural diversity. We conducted a longitudinal cohort study with control groups. The study was implemented in Utah in schools of 8th and 9th-grade levels. Two schools were identified as campaign implementation sites, and two schools of similar socio-economic and ethnocultural characteristics were identified as the control sites. We utilized univariate and multivariate regression analysis to assess changes in students’ exposure to hate messages and attitudes towards ethnocultural diversity. Our study findings can be useful for the development of future campaigns and educational programs as they highlight the importance of ethnocultural empathic awareness in improving students’ attitudes regarding ethnocultural diversity
Policy Paper: The Terrorism, Radicalisation and Extremism Disclosure Scheme (TREDS)
Get PDFThis policy recommendation proposes the implementation of the Terrorism, Radicalisation and Extremism Disclosure Scheme (TREDS) as an additional measure to Prevent and counter violent extremism and terrorism in the United Kingdom. TREDS represents a viable mechanism for a responsible adult (‘the applicant’) to make a disclosure request to joint local authority and Police Prevent teams where they feel an individual (‘the subject’) may pose a risk to a young or vulnerable person (‘the person at-risk’) in relation to terrorism, radicalisation or extremism. A successful disclosure is intended to empower the ‘applicant’ to take proactive steps to safeguard the ‘person at risk’ from the risk of harm posed by the ‘subject’, and would include, where reasonable, proportionate, and necessary, information about a ‘subject’s terrorism related criminal offending history, including any Police intelligence held relating to terrorist group affiliations, associations or activities. TREDS takes inspiration from disclosure schemes already employed to safeguard and protect children and vulnerable people from other crime types such as The Domestic Violence Disclosure Scheme (DVDS), also known as Clare’s Law; and the Child Sexual Offender Disclosure Scheme (CSODS), known as Sarah’s Law. The Terrorism, Radicalisation and Extremism Disclosure Scheme (TREDS) was designed by the author of this policy recommendation between June 2018 and February 2019 in response to the decline in public or community reporting of concerns related to terrorism, radicalisation and extremism. This decline is evidenced by Home Office statistics, which identify that of the 7,318 total referrals made in 2017/18, just 292 (4%) came from communities (Home Office, 2018). TREDS represents a distinct departure from existing reporting processes, and is underpinned by the principle of two-way information sharing between the public and authorities. This signifies a seismic shift toward a more inclusive and reciprocal relationship, and one which is likely to better empower individuals and communities to report concerns as and when they arise
Family-Oriented P/CVE Programs: Overview, Challenges and Future Directions
Get PDFMany have pointed out families to play a crucial role, both as a risk and protective factor, in radicalization leading to violence phenomena. Over the past few years, researchers and practitioners have recognized the importance of ensuring that families are addressed as a prevention target, as well as recognizing the valuable resource that they represent in preventive efforts. Accordingly, the field of P/CVE has witnessed the burgeoning of a variety of prevention and intervention initiatives specifically addressed to families, either aiming to strengthen family resilience in the face of various fragilities or to support parents in the face of problematic situations related to radicalization and (violent) extremism. While the number of family-oriented P/CVE programs has increased over the last decade, the available literature on this topic remains scarce, with very few publications providing knowledge about the nature, objectives and different operating procedures of existing initiatives. In this article, we introduce a typology of family-oriented P/CVE programs, relying on an extensive review of existing initiatives at an international level. We aim to contribute to the current literature by providing a better understanding of the variety of prevention mechanisms for radicalization leading to violence dedicated to families, as well as to discuss the challenges and pitfalls of those initiatives designed for (and sometimes by) families. In doing so, this article provides highlights and lessons that may be useful for the design of future initiatives