Explaining Terrorism

Causes, Processes and Consequences

Martha Crenshaw author

Format:Paperback

Publisher:Taylor & Francis Ltd

Published:8th Oct '10

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Explaining Terrorism cover

This volume comprises some of the key essays by Professor Crenshaw, from 1972 to the present-day, on the causes, processes and consequences of terrorism.

Since the early 1970s, scholars and practitioners have tried to explain terrorism and to assess the effectiveness of government responses to the threat. From its beginnings in a small handful of analytical studies, the research field has expanded to thousands of entries, with an enormous spike following the 9/11 attacks. The field of terrorism studies is now impressive in terms of quantity, scope, and variety. Professor Crenshaw had studied terrorism since the late 1960s, well before it was topical, and this selection of her work represents the development of her thought over time in four areas:

  • defining terrorism and identifying its causes

  • the different methods used to explain terrorism, including strategic, organisational and psychological approaches

  • how campaigns of terrorism end

  • how governments can effectively contribute to the ending of terrorism.

This collection of essays by one of the pioneering thinkers in the field of terrorism studies will be essential reading for all students of political violence and terrorism, security studies and IR/politics in general.

'The leading global thinker on the study of terrorism, Martha Crenshaw has for thirty years produced the most creative, rigorous and important contributions our field has known. And now these can all be found in one place. This book is simply the one indispensable text that every student, scholar and researcher of terrorism and political violence must have. Literally the best of the best.' - John Horgan, Pennsylvania State University

‘Explaining terrorism requires an interdisciplinary approach able to address contextual causes, organizational dynamics and individual motifs. This combination of different levels of the analysis has been at the core of Martha Crenshaw's influential contributions to the field of terrorism study, the best of which are now collected in this precious volume.’ - Donatella della Porta, European University Institute, Florence

'When it comes to the study of terrorism from a genuine social science perspective, professor Martha Crenshaw is the scholar of reference and became so long before the field gained academic centrality worldwide after 9/11.' - Fernando Reinares, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Madrid


'The leading global thinker on the study of terrorism, Martha Crenshaw has for thirty years produced the most creative, rigorous and important contributions our field has known. And now these can all be found in one place. This book is simply the one indispensable text that every student, scholar and researcher of terrorism and political violence must have. Literally the best of the best.' - John Horgan, Pennsylvania State University, USA

‘Explaining terrorism requires an interdisciplinary approach able to address contextual causes, organizational dynamics and individual motifs. This combination of different levels of the analysis has been at the core of Martha Crenshaw's influential contributions to the field of terrorism study, the best of which are now collected in this precious volume.’ -Donatella della Porta, European University Institute, Florence, Italy

'When it comes to the study of terrorism from a genuine social science perspective, professor Martha Crenshaw is the scholar of reference and became so long before the field gained academic centrality worldwide after 9/11.' - Fernando Reinares, Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, Madrid, Spain

"In this important volume, the author, a prominent academic expert on terrorism, has assembled her articles, many of which were previously published in the 1980s and 1990s, with a few published after 2001. The result is a comprehensive compilation that is divided into four parts" - Joshua Sinai, ‘Terrorism Bookshelf: Top 150 Books on Terrorism and Counterterrorism’, Perspectives on Terrorism, Vol. 6, No. 2 (2012)

ISBN: 9780415780513

Dimensions: unknown

Weight: 442g

272 pages