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Citation |
Post JM. Int. J. Group Psychother. 2015; 65(2): 242-271. |
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Affiliation |
Professor of Psychiatry, Political Psychology, and International Affairs, and Director of the Political Psychology Program at the Elliott School of International Affairs at George Washington University in Washington, DC. |
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Copyright |
(Copyright © 2015, Guilford Publications) |
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DOI |
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PMID |
25760786 |
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Abstract |
There are no psychological characteristics or psychopathology that separates terrorists from the general population. Rather it is group dynamics, with a particular emphasis on collective identity that helps explain terrorist psychology. Just as there is a diverse spectrum of terrorisms, so too is there a spectrum of terrorist psychologies. Four waves of terrorism can be distinguished: the Anarchist wave, associated with labor violence in the United States in the late 19th century; the Anti-Colonial wave (nationalist-separatist), with minority groups seeking to be liberated from their colonial masters or from the majority in their country; the New Left wave (social revolutionary); and now the Religious wave. With the communications revolution, a new phenomenon is emerging which may presage a fifth wave: lone wolf terrorists who through the Internet are radicalized and feel they belong to the virtual community of hatred. A typology of lone wolf terrorism is proposed. Language: en |