Internet-Based Radicalization as Enculturation to Violent Deviant Subcultures

ABSTRACT

This work examines the intersections of subcultural theories and radicalization theories from terrorism studies to identify how they may be improved through integration. To date there have been almost no efforts to merge these frameworks, though terrorism shares common characteristics of deviant subcultures. Both are driven by ideologies that are in opposition to that of their targets. We focus particularly on the process of online radicalization to assess how subcultural research in online environments may inform the process of enculturation into a terrorist belief system. We conclude by discussing the implications of this expansion for research on terrorism and subcultures.

Funding

This project was supported, in part, by Award No. 2014-ZA-BX-0004, awarded by the National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, and U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not reflect those of the Department of Justice.

Additional information

Funding

This project was supported, in part, by Award No. 2014-ZA-BX-0004, awarded by the National Institute of Justice, Office of Justice Programs, and U.S. Department of Justice. The opinions, findings, and conclusions or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the authors and do not reflect those of the Department of Justice.

Notes on contributors

Thomas J. Holt

THOMAS J. HOLT is a Professor in the School of Criminal Justice at Michigan State University specializing in cybercrime, policing, and policy. He received his Ph.D. in Criminology and Criminal Justice from the University of Missouri–Saint Louis in 2005. He has published extensively on cybercrime and cyberterror in outlets such as Crime and Delinquency, Deviant Behavior, the Journal of Criminal Justice, Sexual Abuse, and Terrorism and Political Violence.

Joshua D. Freilich

JOSHUA D. FREILICH is a member of the Criminal Justice Department and the Criminal Justice Ph.D. Program at John Jay College. He is the Creator and co-Director of the United States Extremist Crime Database, an open source relational database of violent and financial crimes committed by political extremists in the United States. Professor Freilich’s research has been funded by the Department of Homeland Security and the National Institute of Justice. His research focuses on the causes of and responses to terrorism, bias crimes, measurement issues, and criminology theory, especially environmental criminology and crime prevention.

Steven M. Chermak

STEVEN M. CHERMAK is a Professor in the School of Criminal Justice at the Michigan State University, an investigator for the National Consortium for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism, and Creator and co-Director of the United States Extremist Crime Database. He studies domestic terrorism, media coverage of crime and justice issues, and the effectiveness of specific policing strategies. Recent publications have appeared in Terrorism and Political Violence, Crime and Delinquency, and the Journal of Quantitative Criminology.