Abstract
The present article considers deradicalization programs. It is observed that deradicalization is primarily a strategic tool, that it was already used in the 1970s, that it can occur spontaneously, and that is should be differentiated from physical disengagement. An evaluation of existing deradicalization programs lead to the propositions that 1) deradicalization programs in the area of right-wing extremism primarily focus on changing behavior not thoughts, that 2) currently there is insufficient insight in what motives people to deradicalize, and 3) that insights from psychology are still insufficiently used to increase effectiveness of deradicalization. Research can make an important contribution to optimize efficiency of deradicalization for counterterrorism purposes.
Similar content being viewed by others
References
Ripley, A. (2007). Future revolutions: Reverse radicalism. Time. http://www.time.com/time/specials/2007/article/0,28804,1720049_1720050_1722062,00.html. Accessed 8 September 2010.
Neuman, R. (2010). Prisons and terrorism. Radicalisation and de-radicalisation in 15 countries. Londen: International Centre for the Study of Radicalisation and Political Violence.
Bjorgo, T., & Horgan, J. (Eds.). (2009). Leaving terrorism behind: Individual and collective disengagement. London: Routledge.
McCauley, C. (2006). Jujitsu politics: Terrorism and response to terrorism. In P. R. Kimmel & C. E. Stout (Eds.), Collateral damage: The psychological consequences of America’s war on terrorism (pp. 45–65). Westport: Praeger.
Kruglanski, A. (2002). Inside the terrorist mind. Paper presented to the National Academy of Science, at its annual meeting, April 29, 2002, Washington, D.C.
Gumber, A. (2007). Woman’s diary of a jungle guerrilla’s life. The independent. http://www.independent.co.uk/news/world/americas/womans-diary-of-a-jungle-guerrillas-life-401531.html. Accessed 8 September 2010.
Horgan, J. (2009). Disengaging from terrorism. In D. C. Canter (Ed.), The faces of terrorism: Cross-disciplinary investigations (pp. 258–276). London: Wiley-Blackwell.
Horgan, J. (2009). Walking away from terrorism: Accounts of disengagement from radical and extremist movements. London: Routledge.
Stern, J. (2010). Mind over martyr. Foreign Affairs, 89, 95–108.
Kosloff, S., Greenberg, J., Schmader, T., Dechesne, M., & Weise, D. (2010). Smearing the opposition: Implicit and explicit stigmatization of the 2008 U.S. Presidential candidates and the current U.S. President. Journal of Experimental Psychology: General, 139, 383–398.
Author information
Authors and Affiliations
Corresponding author
Rights and permissions
About this article
Cite this article
Dechesne, M. Deradicalization: not soft, but strategic. Crime Law Soc Change 55, 287–292 (2011). https://doi.org/10.1007/s10611-011-9283-8
Published:
Issue Date:
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/s10611-011-9283-8