The Edge of Violence: Towards Telling the Difference Between Violent and Non-Violent Radicalization

Authors: Bartlett, Jamie; Miller, Carl

Source: Terrorism and Political Violence, Volume 24, Number 1, 1 January 2012 , pp. 1-21(21)

Publisher: Routledge, part of the Taylor & Francis Group

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Abstract:

Radicalization is often seen as a first, prerequisite step along the road towards terrorism. Yet to be radical is merely to reject the status quo, and not necessarily in a problematic or violent way. In Part 1—“Radicals“—this article compares the backgrounds, ideologies, behaviours, and attitudes of a sample of “violent radicals“ with both radical and “mainstream“ non-violent sample groups. By finding both what the violent and non-violent samples share, and also what they do not, the article hopes to achieve a more adept discrimination of violent and non-violent radicalization. In Part 2—“Radicalization“—the article suggests that, in addition to being an intellectual, rational, and religious decision, becoming a terrorist is also an emotional, social, and status-conscious one.

Keywords: extremism; non-violence; radicalization; terrorism; violence

Document Type: Research article

DOI: http://dx.doi.org/10.1080/09546553.2011.594923

Affiliations: 1: Violence and Extremism Programme, DemosLondon, UK

Publication date: 2012-01-01