No description available.

acase@tulane.edu / This essay seeks a more robust understanding of the ways in which domestic Islamic radicalization is presented and discussed in the French public sphere. It illuminates the ways in which the print media across the political spectrum has taken a historical amnesic approach to representing the causes and origins of domestic radicalization, neglecting to convey the significant postcolonial and neocolonial dimensions, and instead employing a selective and misrepresentative discourse that over-simplifies the crucial dynamics of the issue. In doing so, it not only explores the communicative frameworks of a phenomenon that in recent years has come to the forefront of national security issues, but also comments on the larger socio-political trends that have led to such a unified approach to emerge across the political spectrum of France’s otherwise pluralistic press landscape. Analyzing the period between 1995 and the present day, this essay draws from the archives of three major newspapers in France (Le Monde, Le Figaro, and Libération) and focuses on three major incidents of domestic Islamic radicalization to examine the methods by and reasons why newspapers across the political spectrum represent the dynamics and causes of domestic Islamic radicalization in such a formulaic and repetitive nature. / 1 / Charles Tarpey

To understand the conditions and experiences that might make an individual more vulnerable to terrorist radicalization, this study examines a sample group of Muslim's in Great Britain to determine if responses to survey questions on a range of issues and perceptions can provide indications of an individual's vulnerability to terrorist radicalization. Key to this process was the development of a vulnerability to radicalization score that allowed for an analysis of the relationship between this score and different independent variables. The dataset for this study was obtained using the Pew Research Center's Spring 2006 Global Attitudes Project 15 Nation Survey. This survey contains a significant oversampling of Muslim respondents allowing for the statistical analysis of potential vulnerability. It is important to understand that this analysis does not provide any indication of radicalization, but a vulnerability based upon accepted theories discussed in terrorism literature. The testing of commonly held theories regarding terrorist radicalization produced a very different picture from what has been viewed in the past. New findings include a previously unrecognized quantity of women who are potentially vulnerable to radicalization. Additionally, income and education do not seem to play the pivotal role that is usually expected, and analysis indicates there is a link between the perceptions of actions by the United States government in the war to combat terrorism and the respondents' vulnerability to radicalization. Recommendations are for the refinement and expansion of this study to include the remaining Western European democracies that were sampled and the United States in order to perform a comparative analysis proving a broader understanding regarding the vulnerability of Muslims to terrorist radicalization in Western Democracies.

Thesis advisor: Stephen Pfohl / Thesis advisor: Natasha Sarkisian / This dissertation explores the ideological undercurrents of fringe and alternative health movements throughout US history and within today’s wellness industry - specifically the "detox" movement. By investigating health behavior and health ideologies that deviate from or exist in opposition to mainstream medicine, the project examines what is communicated through these movements beyond claims about health. It explores how alternative practitioners discern between good and bad information, how they build knowledge and networks, and how they are driven by broader political ideologies to participate in alternative practices. Using historical analysis, interview data, and case studies of radicalized wellness influencers, the project considers the potential and the limitations of alternative health movements. Because research took place during the Covid-19 pandemic, both the regulatory environment and ideological debates about healthcare were heightened; this enabled an exploration of radicalization pathways within alternative health movements as well. Overall, the project characterizes and evaluates the norms that govern information-seeking within alternative health movements and identifies elements of the “radicalization pipelines” that exist within fringe movements. The first chapter uses historical data to explore how alternative health movements throughout history have been shaped by both epistemological values and bids for class, gender, and race supremacy. The second chapter describes and evaluates the norms that govern information quality and expert legitimacy outside of traditional channels of expertise within today’s wellness industry. And the third chapter investigates radicalization pathways within these movements. / Thesis (PhD) — Boston College, 2023. / Submitted to: Boston College. Graduate School of Arts and Sciences. / Discipline: Sociology.

Indiana University-Purdue University Indianapolis (IUPUI) / Over the last 20 years, domestic far-right extremism has risen to become the greatest threat to peace and safety in the United States. In the last few years alone, racialized, minoritized, and marginalized individuals and communities have been increasingly forced to feel the pain and experience the consequences of domestic far-right terrorism. Supposing academics, community leaders, and elected officials seek to combat the rising threat of far-right extremism in the United States, a greater focus must be paid to the lived experiences of men and women seeking to exit extremist groups. This study aimed to better understand the psychosocial processes involved in the disengagement and/or de-radicalization journey of former far-right extremists. Additionally, this study sought to understand better the potential role social work could play in the disengagement and de-radicalization of far-right extremists seeking to exit a life of hate and extremism. Charmaz’s (2014) grounded theory approach provided the framework for this qualitative study. Semi-structured interviews with 18 former white nationalist extremists recruited through community informants and snowball sampling were used to answer the research question; What are the psychosocial processes involved in the disengagement and de-radicalization journey of former far-right extremists, and how do they develop in society? To date, there has not been a study located utilizing grounded theory in disengagement and de-radicalization studies. Additionally, a theory of disengagement and de-radicalization has yet to be explored. This study sought to explore and conceptualize latent social patterns and structures within the disengagement and de-radicalization journey as a means to construct a theoretical frame to better understand one’s journey from a life of hate. Study findings emerged from over 3,500 coded items from 18 transcripts. Eight themes emerged from the data, and a proposed model conceptualizing the psychosocial processes involved in the journey out of far-right extremism is introduced.

My thesis Threats, risks and prevention of violent radicalization of individuals deals with the phenomenon of radicalization, especially with violent radicalization of an individual. The theoretical section provides current theoretical background with emphasis on contemporary models and theories of radicalization. Further attention is paid to an individual in the process of violent radicalization, risk factors and comparison of self- radicalization of lone assailants and radicalization of an individual within terrorist group or within mainstream society. Specifics of radicalization in Czech Republic, contemporary risks and possibilities of prevention of the phenomenon are also included. As a research method in the empirical part, whose aim was to map key knowledge about radicalization in Czech Republic and experience of refined experts in this area, I chose a qualitative research strategy. Research group consists of 12 experts in the field of psychology, Political Sciences, members of armed forces and academic scholars, touching the topic of radicalization in their field of work. The data was obtained through the series of semi-structured interviews. The outcome of my thesis is the description of the radicalization phenomenon, its specifics in Czech Republic, possible causes and risk factors,...

Syftet med denna uppsats var att undersöka hur IS-rekryteringen går till i Sverige samt att ta reda på möjliga anledningar till varför vissa personer från Sverige ansluter sig till IS. Jag ämnade även undersöka den nya lagstiftningens eventuella påverkan på IS-rekryteringen. För att uppnå mitt syfte genomförde jag sju semistrukturerade intervjuer med personer som i sina yrkesroller kommer i kontakt med frågor som rör våldsbejakande islamistisk extremism. IS-rekryteringen i Sverige sker både på sociala medier och i fysiska miljöer. Sociala medier och Internet utgör dock främst en inspirationskälla medan den största delen av rekryteringen sker på fysiska platser. Ofta sker rekryteringen inom informella grupper men det finns även specifika rekryterare. Det är främst unga personer som rekryteras. Ofta handlar det om en kombination av olika orsaker till varför dessa personer ansluter sig. Vissa gemensamma riskfaktorer har identifierats, exempelvis utanförskap, identitetssökande och sociala orättvisor men anledningarna är ofta väldigt individuella. / The aim of this study was to examine the recruitment to the Islamic state as well as viewing possible reasons and motives for joining the Islamic state. Furthermore I also intended to examine the impact of the new amendment of the law concerning terrorist crimes. The study is based on seven semi-structured interviews with persons who work with this kind of questions. Social media is an important part of the radicalization and recruitment to the Islamic state. General motives for joining the Islamic state are for example alienation, social injustice or a search for identity. Nevertheless the process of radicalization and recruitment are individual and vary between different persons.

No description available.

abstract: This dissertation explores the various online radicalization and recruitment practices of groups like al-Qaeda and Hezbollah, as well as Salafi Jihadists in general. I will also outline the inadequacies of the federal government's engagement with terrorist / Islamist ideologies and explore the ways in which early 20th century foundational Islamist theorists like Hasan al-Banna, Sayyid Qutb, and Abul ala Mawdudi have affected contemporary extremist Islamist groups, while exploring this myth of the ideal caliphate which persists in the ideology of contemporary extremist Islamist groups. In a larger sense, I am arguing that exploitation of the internet (particularly social networking platforms) in the radicalization of new communities of followers is much more dangerous than cyberterrorism (as in attacks on cyber networks within the government and the private sector), which is what is most often considered to be the primary threat that terrorists pose with their presence on the internet. Online radicalization should, I argue, be given more consideration when forming public policy because of the immediate danger that it poses, especially given the rise of microterrorism. Similarly, through the case studies that I am examining, I am bringing the humanities into the discussion of extremist (religious) rhetorics, an area of discourse that those scholars have largely ignored. / Dissertation/Thesis / Doctoral Dissertation English 2014

The use of the Internet as vehicle of socialization has exploded in the 21st century and while this presents exciting possibilities, it also comes with troubling ones. Among those who have embraced this new medium are extremist groups, who use the Web as a space in which to communicate, exchange ideas, network and reach new followers. In regards to this last point, it provides them near unlimited opportunities to gain access to potential recruits and converts, raising interesting questions in terms of the dynamics of the radicalization process and how it manifests itself within the confines of this new arena. Through an analysis of postings made to the discussion board of Stormfront.org, this research paper examines whether or not the radicalization process follows the same transformative pattern in the virtual world as has been described in some of the leading academic theories that address this phenomenon in the physical one.