Terrorism has become a major issue facing law enforcement. However, terrorism is not well understood and experts still disagree on a definition of terrorism.
Discuss the threat of terrorism and distinguish between domestic terrorism and international terrorism. In your opinion, which of the two types of terrorism poses the greater threat to the United States?
Support your opinion with research. As a forensic psychology professional, how would you define terrorism?
Module 4 focuses on a relatively new area in forensic psychology-terrorism. This module examines the threat of domestic and international terrorism. You will also study the psychological profiles of terrorists in this module. The course textbook chapters and the assigned article address the psychological context of terrorism and present psychological typologies (or profiles) of terrorists. Understanding the motives of terrorists and their recruitment strategies assists law enforcement in apprehending terrorists and disrupting the recruitment of individuals willing to kill innocent people.
In this module, you will learn about property and violent economic crimes. The module provides an overview of crime rates as well as the characteristics of and motives for property crimes, stalking, hostage taking, and arson. What allows individuals to justify brutal acts of violence against others? The module focuses on the psychological factors associated with violent crimes, as well as societal influences, and introduces the relatively new area of cybercrimes.
You will conclude this model by beginning the topic of prevention and treatment approaches. The focus here will be on treatment implications for juveniles. In the next module, you will continue on the topic of prevention and treatment by exploring correctional psychology.
• Analyze criminal behavior risk factors from multiple theoretical perspectives and examine the influence of moderator variables (e.g., gender, race, and age).
• Apply the dynamics of various types of criminal behaviors to forensic psychology.
• Synthesize data to explain future directions for policy, prevention, and punishment to minimize the antecedents and outcomes of criminal behavior and aggression.
Terrorism
On April 19, 1995, the Alfred P. Murrah Federal Building in downtown Oklahoma City, Oklahoma, was bombed. The blast claimed 168 lives and injured 853 people. The deceased, including nineteen children, ranged in age from three months to seventy-three years. The bomber, Timothy McVeigh, had parked a truck loaded with explosives next to the day care center in the building (Federal Bureau of Investigation [FBI], n.d.-a). McVeigh was executed by lethal injection on June 11, 2001 (FBI, n.d.-a).
On September 11, 2001, hijacked planes crashed into the twin towers of the World Trade Center, in New York City; the Pentagon, in Washington, DC; and into a field in Pennsylvania. The death toll reached 2,998 and consisted of mostly civilians representing over eighty countries (FBI, n.d.-b).
These two deadly terrorist attacks illustrate the complicated nature of terrorism. Many think of terrorism as an international threat from abroad. However, domestic terrorism is also a threat to the United States, perhaps even more so than international threats.
Why do terrorists attack innocent civilians? What leads terrorists to sacrifice their own lives?
We all have our own definitions of terrorism, but how is it defined by law?
International Terrorism
The term "international terrorism" means activities with the following three characteristics:
• Involving violent acts or acts dangerous to human life that violate federal or state law
• Appearing intended to do at least one of the following:
o Intimidating or coercing a civilian population
o Influencing the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion
o Affecting the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping
• Occurring primarily outside the territorial jurisdiction of the United States or transcending national boundaries in terms of the means by which the criminal activities are accomplished, the persons they appear intended to intimidate or coerce, or the locales in which their perpetrators operate or seek asylum
Domestic Terrorism
The term "domestic terrorism" means activities with the following three characteristics:
• Involving acts that are dangerous to human life and that violate federal or state law
• Appearing intended to do at least one of the following:
o Intimidating or coercing a civilian population
o Influencing the policy of a government by intimidation or coercion
o Affecting the conduct of a government by mass destruction, assassination, or kidnapping
• Occurring primarily within the territorial jurisdiction of the United States
References:
Federal Bureau of Investigation. (n.d.-a). Famous cases & criminals. Retrieved from
https://www.fbi.gov/about-us/history/famous-cases/oklahoma-city-bombing
Federal Bureau of Investigation. (n.d.-b). Testimony. Retrieved from https://www.fbi.gov/news/testimony/the-terrorist-threat-confronting-the-united-states