Psychological Perspectives on Radicalization

"Psychological Perspectives on Radicalization is a must read for researchers, policy makers, and lay people alike looking for a sophisticated understanding of the pathways to radicalization and deradicalization. It provides a novel social psychological analysis of the phenomenon by integrating micro, meso, and macro-level processes thereby advancing our knowledge of the when, why, and how individuals radicalize." – Jolanda Jetten, ARC Laureate Fellow, Professor of Social Psychology, FASSA, School of Psychology, University of Queensland, Australia

"This primer to radicalization summarizes the latest results from academic research in an easy to understand way, without over-simplifying a complex phenomenon. Beyond that, the authors of this volume offer an original model of radicalization of their own and also break new ground in their discussion of resilience to radicalization and, paradoxically, to deradicalization." – Prof. em. Alex P. Schmid, Editor-in-Chief, ‘Perspectives on Terrorism’ and former Officer-in-Charge of the United Nations’ Terrorism Prevention Branch at UNODC

"This very well organized and clearly written volume should be studied by everyone interested to better understand radicalization, from introductory students to advanced experts. The authors have produced a highly valuable contribution to our understanding of radicalization." – Fathali M. Moghaddam, Professor and Director of the Interdisciplinary Program in Cognitive Science, Georgetown University, U.S.

"This book is the perfect introduction kit for anyone who wants to start, do, or reflect on terrorism and radicalization research. It has all the necessary components: key questions on the why, how, and end of terrorism, a serious chapter on methodologies, but it also contains crucial criticisms on far-too-easy one-dimensional radicalization models. In order to understand, make, and solve the radicalization puzzle, reading this book gives every student and researcher a head start." – Beatrice de Graaf, Professor of History of International Relations and Global Governance, Strategic Theme Institutions for Open Societies, Department for History and Art History, Utrecht University, The Netherlands

"Applying a psychological perspective, the authors make a valuable effort to establish factors that explain why some individuals adopt beliefs that violence is a justifiable and necessary to achieve changes in society, and what characterize those that take the step from beliefs into action."- Dr. Tore Bjørgo, Professor at the University of Oslo and the Norwegian Police University College, Director of Center for Research on Extremism (C-REX), Norway

"Solid and well-reasoned reappraisal of one of the oldest issues in the study of terrorism: how do psychological processes influence individuals and groups to embrace political violence? A must-read, written by a highly qualified team of researchers." - Rik Coolsaet, Professor Emeritus, Ghent University, Belgium