Root Causes of Terrorism: Myths, Reality and Ways Forward

by Bjorgo; Tore

• ISBN13: 9780415351508
• ISBN10: 0415351502
• Edition: 1st
• Format: Paperback
• Copyright: 2005-12-05
• Publisher: ROUTLEDGE

Summary

What are the main factors and circumstances that give rise to terrorism? This is a question commonly addressed in political discourse on terrorism and is considered an alternative to dealing with terrorism through military force. However, there have been surprisingly few attempts to analyze the causes of terrorism in a book format. Root Causes of Terrorismis one of the first to provide a detailed account of the motivations behind terrorism. The questions raised include: What are the main factors and circumstances that give rise to various forms of terrorism? What factors provide the preconditions for the emergence of various types of terrorism? What are the typical precipitants for terrorist acts? To what extent is it possible to reduce the problem of terrorism by influencing these root causes? Is it possible to identify root causes in advance of an attack? Should we address those factors that sustain terrorist campaignsrather than root causes? Written by a team of leading international experts, this book provides a sophisticated analysis of one of the most pressing issues facing the world today and is essential reading for those with a research and professional interest in Terrorism and Security Studies.

Table of Contents

List of figures	viii
List of tables	ix
List of contributors	xi
Preface	xvii
1 Introduction	1	(15)
TORE BJØRGO
2 Exploring roots of terrorism	16	(17)
DIPAK K. GUPTA
3 Impoverished terrorists: stereotype or reality?	33	(11)
JITKA MALE(KOVA
4 The social and psychological characteristics of terrorism and terrorists	44	(10)
JOHN HORGAN
5 The socio-cultural underpinnings of terrorist psychology: When hatred is bred in the bone'	54	(16)
JERROLD M. POST
6 Social, organizational and psychological factors in suicide terrorism	70	(17)
ARIEL MERARI
7 Palestinian resistance and 'suicide bombing': causes and consequences	87	(16)
HISHAM H. AHMED
8 Roots of terrorism in the Middle East: internal pressures and international constraints	103	(16)
ABDULLAH YOUSEF SAHAR MOHAMMAD
9 Nationalist separatism and terrorism in comparative perspective	119	(12)
FERNANDO REINARES
10 Root causes of terrorism?: a case study of the Tamil insurgency and the LTTE	131	(10)
SHRI D.R. KAARTHIKEYAN
11 Right-wing terrorism	141	(13)
WILHELM HEITMEYER
12 Social-revolutionary terrorism in Latin America and Europe	154	(10)
PETER WALDMANN
13 The use of terrorism by organized crime: an Italian case study	164	(14)
ALISON JAMIESON
14 Patterns of state failure: the case of Lebanon	178	(11)
FARID EL KHAZEN
15 State sponsorship: a root cause of terrorism?	189	(9)
LOUISE RICHARDSON
16 Expected utility and state terrorism	198	(17)
MICHAEL STOHL
17 A conceptual framework for resolving terrorism's causes	215	(8)
JOSHUA SINAI
18 Prevention of terrorism: towards a multi-pronged approach	223	(18)
ALEX P. SCHMID
19 Fire of Iolaus: the role of state countermeasures in causing terrorism and what needs to be done	241	(15)
ANDREW SILKE
20 Conclusions	256	(9)
TORE BJØRGO
Index	265