Journal for Deradicalization

The Power Threat Meaning Framework: Implications for Practice in Preventing Extremist Violence

Christopher Dean — 2024-09-27

The contribution and influence of psychological distress to interest and involvement in extremist violence has received considerable attention in recent years. At the same time, dominant medical models for understanding such distress - typically framed as mental illness or disorder - have been challenged by emerging alternative paradigms in parts of the Western world. Understanding the contribution of psychological distress to extremist violence and how to prevent it requires consideration through these emerging paradigms and interpretative lenses. The Power Threat Meaning Framework (PTMF) is one such paradigm, increasingly used by practitioners to understand and prevent psychological distress, unusual experiences, or troubled or troubling behaviour. This paper outlines its central theory and principles, investigates how these are relevant to informing our understanding of the troubling behaviour of involvement in extremist violence, and its implications for preventative practice, illustrated through an example case study. The case is made for the potential of this paradigm to support effective and ethical practice in the context of extremist violence.

Podcast Patriots: How Far-Right Women Podcasters Shaped the Narrative Around the January 6 Insurrection

Catherine Girard — 2024-09-27

Women play a crucial role in softening and mainstreaming the far right’s appearance to the general population despite being less visible on the frontlines of radical or extremist events. This phenomenon has become increasingly apparent through audio-based content. With low barriers to entry and ease of creation, far-right women have increasingly relied on podcasts to mainstream their ideologies. However, this method of dissemination remains understudied in comparison to its reach. Accordingly, this research analyzes the ways four women-hosted far-right podcasts in the United States used their platform to speak about the January 6, 2021, Capitol Hill insurrection. Through the use of frame theory, this research demonstrates that the podcasters fail to acknowledge the insurrection as a significant issue, instead opting to deflect the greater blame onto left-leaning social movements, the government, and the mainstream media. Furthermore, this research shows that the podcasters use strong fear-mongering tactics and provide calls to action to remedy a perceived left stronghold. Throughout, the podcasters invoke patriotic sentiments, setting a narrative of allegiance and responsibility that mobilizes their listeners to act against a perceived enemy. This research contributes to the discourse on far-right social media influencers, suggesting the need for a distinct classification for far-right influencers who disseminate content with an explicit, far-right extremist political angle, as it can avoid the oversimplification of gender roles with these movements, as well as the misconception that women within these groups share uniform beliefs and behaviours. Finally, this research proposes the development of targeted prevention and counter-measures using inoculation theory and frame theory, emphasizing the essential integration of gender dynamics within P/CVE efforts.

Talking about violent extremism: Experiences of Canadian secondary school teachers in four metropolitan areas

Maihemuti Dil Dilimulati — 2024-09-27

This study explores the perspectives and experiences of Canadian secondary school teachers around violent extremism through semi-structured interviews and focus group discussions with 30 (n=30) teachers from Montreal, Toronto, Calgary, and Vancouver. The findings reveal unanimous eagerness among participants to engage with controversial subjects, yet almost all of them exhibit discomfort in addressing violent extremism, primarily due to perceived deficiencies in their expertise and training in this area. Some teachers show reluctance to address these topics to avoid excluding or marginalizing specific student groups, notably Muslims. Interestingly, a minority of teachers suggest that white students are immune to radicalization. They also expose unconscious biases concerning radicalization among religious minority students, especially Muslims, reflecting dominant discourses around radicalization and Islam. Moreover, there exists dissent regarding the necessity of addressing radicalization in schools that seemingly lack youth radicalization, mirroring a reactive discourse in preventing/countering violent extremism (P/CVE). Alarmingly, some participants report Islamophobia among their colleagues, highlighting an urgent issue that needs attention. Drawing from these insights, the study advocates for comprehensive teacher training on violent extremism and emphasizes the importance of collaboration between schools, parents, and local education ministries. It also criticizes Canada’s National Strategy on Countering Radicalization to Violence for its shortcomings and calls for a more robust and inclusive approach to P/CVE. Ultimately, the study underscores the need to integrate an ethic of care into educational practices, fostering an inclusive environment where all students feel valued and supported.

Approaching P/CVE through building trust and meaningful relationships with Muslim communities

Wesam Charkawi — 2024-09-27

This paper examines the level of trust among Muslims in Australia towards the Government and its institutions. It places particular emphasis on the government’s approach to countering violent extremism programs and examines whether a lack of trust negatively impacts cooperation and engagement with the government and P/CVE programs. There is limited research exploring the issue of trust from the perspective of Muslims and how this impacts cooperation and engagement with the government. A survey of Australian Muslims (N= 505) that incorporated both quantitative and qualitative components was used. Inferential statistics (correlations) and thematic analysis were utilised to assess the data. Research suggests that trust is crucial to assisting in the success of P/CVE programs and counter-terrorism efforts. The findings show high levels of distrust towards the government and its institutions, which has flow-on effects, particularly in countering violent extremism. This strongly suggests that P/CVE programs should be approached from a trust-based and relationship-building perspective. Recommendations are made at the end of this paper on how to engage the Muslim community on the basis of building trust and meaningful relationships.

Where Are They Now?: The Costs and Benefits of Doxxing Far-Right Extremists

Amarnath Amarasingam — 2024-09-27

Research on far-right extremism has grown substantially over the last decade, owing to the rise of Trump, attacks such as the one in Christchurch and Buffalo, as well as the mainstreaming of hate speech and polarization. In addition to research, there have been antifascist activists who have been engaged in doxxing members of the far right who are part of our schools, our militaries, and governments. Releasing the private information of members of far-right movements to the public has created interesting policy and law enforcement dilemmas. With respect to law enforcement, can doxxing be used as a tool to force individuals to disengage from groups? For social media companies, doxxing violates their terms of service, but should an exception be made in these instances since it purportedly serves a public interest? For this paper, we interviewed 10 former members of the far right who have experienced doxxing over the last several years. The paper explores what happened, the immediate and long-term effects of doxxing on their lives, and ongoing challenges of being exposed against their will. We conclude with some policy recommendations related to the costs and benefits of doxxing on these individuals but also society at large.

Socioeconomic Grievances, Opportunities, and Frames: Conceptualizing Marginalization and Islamist Radicalization in Post-2011 Egypt and Tunisia, and Implications for PCVE

Clara-Auguste Süß — 2024-09-27

The article investigates the widespread assumption that socioeconomic marginalization helps explain the dynamics of radicalization, using the example of Islamist radicalization in Egypt and Tunisia after 2011. It develops a theoretical framework informed by social movement theory and, based on a comprehensive study of both academic publications and grey literature on the case studies published between 2011 and 2023, identifies key mechanisms linking socioeconomic factors and Islamist radicalization. It finds evidence for two major categories of mechanisms: Socioeconomic grievances can drive radicalization processes by motivating individuals or groups to use violent tactics or join violent groups, and by contributing to the delegitimization of the state, which, in turn, can legitimize the use of violence. Socioeconomic opportunities, which are basically created by the (relative) absence of the state and its services, can contribute to radicalization by enabling violent groups to generate material resources, and by providing radical groups with the opportunity to attract supporters and followers and gain legitimacy among them by offering social services. The article identifies a lack of studies on framing processes and narratives that could explain the extent and manner of the groups’ own referral to socioeconomic marginalization. In sum, the developed framework aims to help explaining the occurrence of radicalization in socioeconomically marginalized areas but also contribute to a better understanding of why many disenfranchised areas do not become jihadist hotbeds. The article concludes with discussing the practical implications of its findings, highlighting potentials for prevention, deradicalization and reintegration efforts.

Acknowledgments

Research for this paper has been generously supported by a grant of the Volkswagen Foundation in the context of the research project “The socioeconomic dimension of Islamist radicalization in Egypt and Tunisia”. We would also like to thank Ahmed Aakhunzzada for research support and Jonas Wolff for comments to an earlier version of this paper.

Doing it again. Assessing the features and implications of terrorism recidivism in the context of jihadi attacks in Europe

Erik Hacker — 2024-09-27

This article focuses on the issue of terrorism recidivism as it relates specifically to terrorist attacks. Based on the analysis of a dataset comprising information on the jihadi attacks and their perpetrators in Europe between 2014 and 2022, it introduces the following findings: terrorism recidivists are disproportionately more likely to carry out attacks in groups with other “experienced” terrorists; their attacks have a significantly higher impact in terms of casualties; the rate of mental health is remarkably low; and they seem to be able to evade authorities in a much higher percentage of cases than other perpetrators without a terrorism-related criminal record. Overall, these suggest that terrorism recidivist perpetrators operate more “professionally” than the rest of the terrorist perpetrators, making their attacks more lethal and harder to prevent.

The Working Alliance in Practice: Navigating Effective Engagement with Violent Extremist Offenders

Ioan Durnescu — 2024-09-27

Establishing trust and building a strong Working Alliance are crucial challenges when working with violent extremist offenders (VEOs). Extensive literature highlights the significance of these elements for effective interventions with this group. However, research has not yet approached the specific steps involved in creating a Working Alliance. This article fills this gap by drawing on in-depth interviews conducted with eight professionals from six European jurisdictions. The article also contrasts insights from practical work with academic state of the art. By offering these insights, the article aims to facilitate the creation of effective Working Alliances and contribute to the academic debates on the disengagement of VEOs.

Acknowledgements

The author is grateful to Willem van der Brugge – former Secretary General of CEP – and Robert Örell – co-leader of RAN – for their help in conducting this piece of research.

This article was written as part of the EU funded project EUTEx: Developing a European framework for disengagement and reintegration of extremist offenders and radicalised individuals in prison, including returning foreign terrorist fighters and their families, project ID: 101035851.