Radicalization
Radicalization describes the process in which an individual or a group develops or adopts radical or extreme political , social or religious attitudes and beliefs and, if necessary, adopts a corresponding ideology . It is not a one-off, isolated decision, but a gradual development that gradually and cumulatively leads to changes in political, social or religious thinking, acting towards fellow human beings and social institutions , the social environment, life planning and personality structure as a result, it can lead to extremism , hostility towards society and support for or even participation in anti-constitutional , revolutionary , warlike or terrorist acts. A significant threshold in the process of radicalization is the willingness to use force to implement political goals.
Mechanisms
The process of radicalization is not always the same. People from different socio-economic and personal backgrounds radicalize themselves in different ways. There is no universal and uniform scientific explanation for the radicalization of individuals. In research, different approaches from different departments are pursued, none of which offer a complete and comprehensive explanatory model, but rather complement one another. Especially theories of group dynamics from social psychology are often used.
Radicalization can take place at different levels. In addition to individual and group processes, social processes also play a role in the context of radicalization. In the following, some important mechanisms will be named without claiming to be exhaustive.
Individually
- Resentment arises as a result of a personal experience .
- In certain cases political events or developments cause individuals to become radicalized. Often these individuals associate themselves with major intellectual movements. A well-known example of this is Ted Kaczynski - also known as Unabomber .
- Typically, joining a radical group is slow and gradual. The mechanism by which an individual gradually convinces himself has been well studied in social psychology. The theory of cognitive dissonance explains this fact with the effort to minimize differences in one's own behavior and beliefs. Probably the best-known behavioral experiment for this is the Milgram experiment .
- Individuals are recruited from a terrorist group through personal acquaintances. This mechanism is mainly studied by researchers of the Social Movement Theory .
groups
Interaction within a group and the effects of group processes on the individual play a major role in radicalization. Here, among other things, existing concepts from social psychological research on group dynamics can be applied.
- In groups, there is overall greater agreement and, at the same time, a shift in average opinion towards extremes. Social psychology calls this phenomenon group polarization .
- In isolation and under threat, groups develop a strong interdependence . This leads to an extreme cohesion within the group, which in turn leads to high pressure for group-compliant behavior and an internalized correspondence of values.
- Groups competing for the same sympathizers can increase their status through more radical actions on the cause. This can go as far as actively combating groups that pursue similar goals. An extreme example of this is the LTTE .
- The interaction of groups and the state authority can lead to mutual escalation. On the one hand, the excessive use of force on the part of the state against the group can lead to an increase in sympathy for the group and thus new people to join the group. At the same time, only those group members remain whose conviction in the cause is strong enough to withstand the conflict with the state.
- The competition within the group for status, as described by the theory of social comparison , can give rise to intense conflicts. As a result, the terrorist groups can split up. An example of this is the IRA, which is divided into many competing groups.
- Groups in conflict with one another for long periods of time become more extreme in their negative perception of one another, especially when the conflict is violent. This tendency can become so extreme that the enemy is no longer treated as a human being, leading to dehumanization.
Socially
Phenomena that affect society as a whole, such as globalization, can also play an important role in the radicalization process. The loss of traditions and norms leads to uncertainty and problems in the search for identity. Radical groups are attractive to those people who are looking for orientation in their lives because they offer simple, fixed systems of norms and values that simplify complex social life.
Risk factors
A number of risk factors for radicalization of an individual can be identified. However, the presence of these predictors does not necessarily result in the radicalization of an individual. Rather, it is an attempt to identify certain risks and thus offer a possible approach to prevention.
Without claiming to be exhaustive, John Horgan suggests the following risk factors:
- Emotional vulnerability, such as anger or a feeling of not belonging.
- Dissatisfaction with current employment, in a political or social sense; feeling that the political realities are not producing results. Terrorism is then seen as urgently needed to defend itself.
- Identification with victims to justify attacks against the enemy.
- Believing that it is not immoral to act violently against the state.
- The belief that you can achieve more in death than you could ever achieve in life and through actions to increase respect and authority within the group.
- Kinship or social contact with people who are experiencing the same problems or are already involved in a radical organization.
Islamist radicalization
A special case of radicalization is radicalization with Salafist ideology. Rauf Ceylan and Michael Kiefer see it as a multi-phase process (1. pre-radicalization, 2. self-identification, 3. indoctrination, 4. jihadization ), "in which previously inconspicuous people meet in a shorter or longer period of time, in group processes or radical alone Adopt positions that, with or without an advocacy of violence, aim to eliminate the local free-democratic order of values. " The end or climax of radicalization is a religiously founded attitude in favor of violence, which can lead to delinquent behavior at any time. However, it is unclear from when a person is considered radicalized. Assessments by authorities, teachers, social workers, etc. are mostly based on partial observations and assumptions based on them. So far, there are no scientific criteria for a serious judgment.
See also
Web links
- Deradicalization , From Politics and Contemporary History, Federal Agency for Civic Education (bpb), July 9, 2013, with u. a. the contributions:
Individual evidence
- ↑ John Horgan: From Profiles to Pathways and Roots to Routes: Perspectives from Psychology on Radicalization into Terrorism . In: ANNALS . July 2008, pp. 80-94. doi : 10.1177 / 0002716208317539 .
- ^ Rauf Ceylan, Michael Kiefer: Salafism: fundamentalist currents and prevention of radicalization . Springer VS, Wiesbaden, 2013. p. 162.