Intro and History
A testable statement designed to see if the theory "holds water" / should be logically consistent with your theory / should be probabilistic
Hypothesis
Factors that facilitate cooperation (to overcome collective action problems)?
Selective incentives, iteration, information (and communication), # and size of actors, etc.
How does control over territory affect lethality, according to Asal and Rethmeyer (2008)?
Territory x religious/ethno-nationalism -> much more lethal
(Unmet) infantile sexual desires can lead an individual to become a terrorist -> This is known as?
Psychoanalytical approach (largely impressionistic and difficult to generalize)
Which country was the "White Widow" originally from?
The UK
How did the data collection from a private security firm earlier on influence the GTD?
They were trying to be inclusive - for example, damage to property (sabotage) was mostly included
"Your government may take actions to limit your rebellion. Sometimes these actions backfire."
Law of coercive responsiveness
According to Masters (2008), the Tamil Tigers would be an example of...?
Example of an explanation of terrorism based on cognitive theories?
Reduced cognitive flexibility -> ethnocentrism and racism (us or them mentality)
Which non-religious group was the most actively engaged in suicide terrorism, according to Pape (2003)?
The Tamil Tigers (LTTE)
Which was the last "wave" of post-WWII terrorism?
Religious (Islamist)
Five strategies from Kydd and Walter (2006)
Attrition / Intimidation / Provocation / Spoiling / Outbidding
In Piazza (2009), highly ambitious groups that pursue abstract, complex goals driven primarily by ideology, and have a rather distant/symbolic relationship with the audience are known as...?
Universal/abstract (AQ-like)
In K&M (2003), what did the results of the Palestinian survey illustrate?
Poverty and education were not very good predictors of support for terrorist attacks
Two ways suicide terrorism can be considered "strategic"?
1. It works (esp. against democracies), 2. As an outbidding strategy (against other groups)
US DoS defines terrorism as...
"premeditated, politically motivated violence perpetrated against non-combatant targets by sub-national groups or clandestine agents"
3 conditions associated with bargaining failure?
1. Incomplete information 2. Credible commitment 3. Indivisibility of issues or goods
Which type of group was the most lethal, according to Masters (2008)?
RWR-EN (esp. fundamentalists)
What does the natural systems model suggest (Abrahms 2008)?
Social solidarity (sense of belonging, brotherhood) is the main reason why people join terrorist groups
"Demand" reasons to use females in terrorist attacks?
Better access to targets, arouse less suspicion, attract more media attention, elicit sympathy, etc.
Historical events (1979) associated with the beginning of the Islamist wave?
Soviet Invasion of Afghanistan / Iranian Revolution
"Cascade effect" in Van Belle (1996)?
As # recruits reach the threshold for success, perceived likelihood of success rapidly shifts from 0 to 1 (broader context: leadership can influence people's perception of success)
What does a group achieve by imposing sacrifices and prohibitions (Berman and Laitin 2008)?
Ensure better quality recruits (weed out potential defectors)
Demographics about the "Jewish Underground"?
They were disproportionately well-educated and in high-paying occupations
Among religiously motivated groups, what was the relationship between organizational age and the predicted probability of adopting suicide terrorism?
The younger the group, the more likely to adopt~