Countering Terrorism: Psychosocial Strategies contextualizes the issues related to terrorism and places the discourse within the ambit of sociocultural theories. The book goes beyond the obvious and commonsensical notions and discusses the relevant issues from interdisciplinary perspectives, informed by theoretical stances of not only psychological sciences, but other social sciences like political science, criminology, military, and sociology as well.
The volume contains 18 chapters by expert authors with diverse cultural backgrounds and provides a wide ranging canvas for multifaceted understanding of the terror phenomenon. The opening section, Understanding Terrorism: Psychosocial Issues, places emphasis on developing a well-heeled construct with strong theoretical foundations and empirical understanding of the psycho-socio-cultural dynamics involved in perpetration of terror acts. The second section, Countering Terrorism: Psychosocial Avenues, flows from the understanding thus attained and expounds counter-terror strategies and preventive measures that go beyond the obvious short-term goals and envisage the creation of a peaceful world.
Arvustused
The multi-disciplinary scholarship contained in this highly relevant book could be said to have resolved the decades-long conundrum of how terrorism should be defined and understoodThis publication could be recommended as a comprehensive exploration of the subject of terrorismCountering Terrorism is a book which ought to get into the hands of governments and other relevant quarters which are deeply concerned about terror, its causes and containment. [ The book] explore numerous dimensions of this troubling political phenomenon, which could prove highly revelatory to the researcher and a lay reader. The books editors have met a crying need in the discipline of Political Science by bringing out this book. It would also be of immense help in raising public awareness about terror and its hitherto numerous unexplored dimensions. -- The Island The diverse geographic and cultural affiliations of the authors are the biggest strength of the text as it adds force to the arguments and content. [ The book] gives a balanced worldview and not a partisan subjective opinion of an individual researcherThe compendium is a must readdue credit must be given to the authors for relating various concepts to field examples, making the narrative easy to understand and an extremely useful addition to the literature available on countering terrorism. -- Peace and Conflict Studies The book is a formidable collection of essays on terrorism written by an impressive group of experts from India and abroad the book is surprisingly original in its contents. It is not another rehash of past events or analyses of terrorist movements. This voluminous book is, in fact, a serious study of the social, religious and psychological factors that cause terrorism, and various strategies best suited to combat the various manifestations of terrorism. thought-provoking and provide many pointers for practitioners. -- The Asian Age A Comprehensive yet concise compilation of the work on historic, economic, socio-cultural, political and psychological aspects of understanding and countering terrorism.... the compilation is educative reading for those dealing with terrorism, may they be from the civil services, defence forces, police and parliamentary forces. Worth a look by politicians...The book will benefit those researching in countering terrorism and those who prepare policy dealing with such matters. -- Defence Watch, Vol 13, August 2013 The book tackles psychological aspects of terrorism and offers countermeasures, and will be of interest to researchers and academia involved in studying the issue. It is recommended for libraries of research and educational institutes dealing with defence topics. -- Journal of Defence Studies
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ix | |
| Foreword |
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xiii | |
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| Preface |
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xv | |
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SECTION I UNDERSTANDING TERRORISM: PSYCHOLOGICAL ISSUES |
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1 Terrorism: A Conceptual Framework |
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3 | (23) |
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2 Terrorism: Psychological Issues |
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26 | (21) |
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3 Sociocultural Aspects of Terrorism |
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47 | (27) |
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4 The Sociopsychological Impact of Terrorism: Key Concepts, Research, and Theory |
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74 | (22) |
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5 The Behavioral Profile of a Terrorist: Theoretical and Empirical Observations |
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96 | (22) |
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6 Understanding Terrorist Groups |
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118 | (25) |
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7 The Leadership Puzzle in Terrorism Study |
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143 | (18) |
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8 Bioterrorism: Psychological Implications of Biological Weapons Agents and Mass Contagion |
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161 | (21) |
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9 The Role of the Media in Propagating Terrorism |
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182 | (21) |
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SECTION II COUNTERING TERRORISM: PSYCHOSOCIAL AVENUES |
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10 Terrorist Motives: A Reassessment of the Conventional Wisdom |
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203 | (24) |
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11 Rational Choice and Terrorist Target Selection |
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227 | (23) |
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12 Impact of Virtual World in Creation and Sustenance of Terrorists |
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250 | (32) |
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13 Risk Assessment in Counterterrorism |
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282 | (23) |
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14 Strategic Interrogation: Interviewing Terrorist Suspects |
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305 | (26) |
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15 Educating People to Counterterrorism: "Cognitive Immunization" against Violent Extremism in Indonesia |
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331 | (24) |
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16 How Policies Impacting Intergroup Relations May Escalate or De-escalate Political Aggression |
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355 | (30) |
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17 The Role of Strategic Information Operations in Countering Terrorism |
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385 | (23) |
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18 Psychospiritual Basis of Understanding, Prevention, and Control of Violence and Terrorism |
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408 | (19) |
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| About the Editors and Contributors |
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427 | (5) |
| Index |
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432 | |
Updesh Kumar, Ph.D., is a Scientist F and in the chair of the Head, Mental Health Division at Defence Institute of Psychological Research, R&D Organization, Ministry of Defence, Delhi, India. Dr Kumar obtained his Doctorate degree from Punjab University, Chandigarh. With more than 23 years of experience as a scientist in R&D organization, he specializes in the area of suicidal behavior, personality assessment, and personnel selection and has developed a number of psychological tests and assessment tools. Dr Kumar has been a psychological assessor (psychologist) in various services selection boards for eight years for the selection of officers in Indian Armed Forces. He is a certified psychologist by The British Psychological Society with level A and level B Certificate of Competence in Occupational Testing. He has to his credit many important research projects relating to the Armed Forces. Dr Kumar has edited four quality volumes on Recent Developments in Psychology, Counseling: A Practical Approach, Suicidal Behaviour: Assessment of People at Risk (SAGE Publications), and recently Countering Terrorism: Psychosocial Strategies published by SAGE Publications, Positive Psychology: Applications in Work, Health and Well-being (in press, Pearson Publication) and Suicidal Behaviour: Underlying Dynamics (in press, Routledge Publication, UK). Dr Kumar has authored manuals on Suicide and Fratricide: Dynamics and Management for defense personnel, Managing Emotions in Daily Life & at Work Place for general population, Overcoming Obsolescence & Becoming Creative in R&D Environment for R&D organizations, and Self-Help Techniques in Military Settings. He has authored more than 50 other academic publications in the form of research papers, journal articles, and book chapters and represented his institute at national and international level. He has been the recipient of Defence R&D organizations (DRDO) Technology Group Award in 2001 and 2009, and Professor Manju Thakur Memorial Award 2009 by Indian Academy of Psychology (IAAP). He was also conferred with the DRDOs Best Popular Science Communication Award 2009 by Honble Defence Minister of India and DRDO Technology Day Award, 2012 by Honble Scientific Advisor to Defence Minister. Dr Kumar has been recently conferred upon with the prestigious DRDOs Scientist of the Year Award 2013 by the Government of India.
Manas K. Mandal, Ph.D., is currently Director General (Life Sciences), Defence R&D Organization (DRDO), Ministry of Defence, Government of India, Delhi. Dr Mandal obtained his postgraduate and Doctorate degrees from Calcutta University in 1979 and 1984, respectively. He has completed his Postdoctoral Research Program at Delware University (Fulbright Fellow), USA in 19861987 and at Waterloo University (Shastri & NSERC Fellow), Canada in 19931994. Dr Mandal was a Professor of Psychology at Department of Humanities & Social Sciences, Indian Institute of Technology, Kharagpur. He was also a visiting professor at Kyushu University, Japan in 1997. During 2003, he was a Fulbright Visiting Lecturer, Harvard University, USA. He has been awarded various Research Fellowships and Scientific Awards such as International Scientific Exchange Award (Canada), Seymour Kety Grant (USA). Recipient of four prestigious awards from the Prime Minister of India, Young Scientist Award (1986), Agni Award for Excellence in Self-Reliance (2005), Scientist-of-the Year Award (2006), Technology Spin-Off Award (2007). Dr Mandal has to his credit seven books, and over 100 research papers/chapters published in peer-reviewed journals/books. These researches are cited in more than 125 international journals and books.
