HLSC 610-D01: Understanding Terrorism and Homeland Security
Module 3: Week 3 – Discussion Board: Comprehending Terrorism (Due 07.07.22)
Based on your readings thus far from the text and your own research, discuss the following:
Describe the behavior and tactics used by terrorists.
How has terrorism changed over the years to what it is now?
How is it now?
At what point does one become a terrorist?
HLSC 610-D01: Understanding Terrorism and Homeland Security
Liberty University
HLSC 610-D01: Understanding Terrorism and Homeland Security
Week 3 Discussion Board: Comprehending Terrorism
Professor Richards
July 5, 2022
Terrorism: Behavior and Tactics
Terrorists use a variety of behaviors and tactics to promote their ideology and achieve their goals,
including propaganda to manipulate other people’s beliefs, attitudes, or actions. McEntire (2018)
points out that individual terrorists and terrorist organizations commonly use the media to reach
the masses and promote their ideology. They strategize to create images or videos that would
entice new members and, at the same time, keep current members motivated. These images and
videos are disseminated via the media or websites dedicated to sharing their views with others.
Another tactic used by terrorists, when all others have failed, is violence. The use of violence
attracts the attention of the media, political leaders, and the community. Other common patterns
seen across various terrorist organizations include recruiting, financing, training, acquiring false
documents, seeking safe havens, using code words and secret communications, planning attacks,
and searching for weapons (McEntire, 2018).
According to Emerson (2006), as cited by McEntire (2018), “terrorist groups also seek to obtain
financial resources to support their activities” (p. 79). Financial resources are sometimes
obtained through illegal activities like shell companies, drug trade, human trafficking, corrupt
charities, counterfeit merchandise, and financial support from individuals and governments
(McEntire, 2018). However, it is also essential to note that terrorism may be funded through
legitimate means, for example, through legitimate business establishments or large inheritances
from families. Financial stability ensures that terrorist organizations can continue functioning
and supporting their activities to achieve their objectives.
Terrorism: Then and Now
Over time, the alterations in the manifestation of terrorism have changed in structure, goals, and
methods. According to McEntire (2018), scholars who have explored these changes cited the
following:
In the past, terrorists were organized hierarchically; today, they are arranged in a diffuse
manner that resembles a network of many groups; hence, directions or orders may not
always come from a central headquarter or someone at the top of the hierarchy chain;
some terrorist groups have learned to become more independent in terms of raising funds
that they no longer need the financial security previously provided by state governments;
historically, terrorism has only existed in middle eastern countries and Europe; today, we
learn that terrorism does not discriminate, and no place or country is immune to it;
HLSC 610-D01: Understanding Terrorism and Homeland Security
the goals of terrorist organizations have also shifted. In the past, terrorist organizations
were motivated by nationalist goals to promote freedom or strengthen government
control over the masses; today, their mission is more messianic in nature;
since the inception of terrorism, it has long been associated with the assassination of
specific leaders; today, terrorists have targeted citizens to instill fear and destabilize
society to achieve their objectives. (pp. 105-106)
The complexity of terrorist organizations has grown tremendously since the advancement of
technology. Terrorists' attacks, recruitment, and exposure methods have become more
sophisticated. The changing nature of terrorism and its global expansion has made it increasingly
challenging to mitigate and prevent terrorism.
The Becoming of a Terrorist
In light of the ever-changing dynamics of terrorism, why an individual chooses to become a
terrorist has also been examined by many scholars. However, it is difficult to point out who is a
terrorist at face value, but their activities do however follow certain patterns. For example,
Horgan and Taylor (2001), as cited by Borum (2004), noted that “there is rarely a conscious
decision made to become a terrorist. Most involvement in terrorism results from gradual
exposure and socialization towards extreme behaviors” (p. 23). Hence, an individual’s motive
and vulnerability play a significant role in determining if an individual will succumb to the
persuasions of terrorists. Borum (2004) claims that “three motivational themes—injustice,
identity, and belonging—appear to be prominent and consistent among terrorists; […] [thus,]
strongly influence decisions to enter terrorist organizations and to engage in terrorist activity” (p.
26). However, the reality is that motives to join a terrorist organization and engage in terrorism
vary considerably across different groups; thus, they may change over time. Nonetheless, when
one conspires to commit a crime through, as the Department of Defense points out, “the
calculated use of violence to instill fear, coerce or intimidate governments and societies in
achieving their goals” (McEntire, 2018, p. 32) that is the becoming of a terrorist.
1 John 4:18 states that “there is no fear in love. But perfect love drives out fear because fear has
to do with punishment. The one who fears is not made perfect in love” (English Standard
Version Bible, 2001/2011). This verse reminds us that because we live in a sin-filled world, no
one is immune to fear. Hence, fear of punishment, perceptions of injustices, and the need for
identity and a sense of belonging could drive individuals to embrace terrorist ideologies and
attempt to reign terror in the world to achieve their goals. Terrorism, for example, is “an end
result of a dialectical process that gradually pushes an individual toward a commitment to
violence over time” (Borum, 2004, p. 27).
References:
Borum, R. (2004). Psychology of terrorism. University of South Florida, 1-
78. https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/208552.pdf
English Standard Version Bible. (2016). EVC Online. https://esv.literalword.com/ (Original work
published 2001)
HLSC 610-D01: Understanding Terrorism and Homeland Security
McEntire, D. A. (2018). Introduction to homeland security, 2nd Edition. [VitalSource Bookshelf
version]. Retrieved from vbk://9781119430636
Discussion Responses:
Hi Matthew,
Great discussion post on this week’s topic. According to Horgan and Taylor (2001), as cited by
Borum (2014), “there is rarely a conscious decision made to become a terrorist. Most
involvement in terrorism results from gradual exposure and socialization towards extreme
behavior” (p. 23). Kunst et al. (2021), in their study on how lay people perceive individuals at
risk of becoming terrorists, revealed that adverse childhood experiences, low socioeconomic
status, substance abuse, discrimination, mental disorder, criminogenic past, and military history,
among others, are risk factors that may influence an individual’s decision to become a terrorist.
Thus, terrorists take advantage of those most vulnerable to recruit into their organizations. While
there may be multiple reasons one follows a pathway to terrorism, some scholars agree that a
sequence of stages could potentially be applied across terrorist groups or organizations, both
domestic and foreign. Borum (2014) explains that “the process [or the first stage] begins by
framing some unsatisfying event or condition as being unjust. The injustice is blamed on a target
policy, person, or nation. The responsible party, perceived as a threat, is then vilified—often
demonized—which facilitates justification for aggression” (p. 28).
References:
Borum, R. (2004). Psychology of terrorism. University of South Florida, 1-
78. https://www.ojp.gov/pdffiles1/nij/grants/208552.pdf
Kunst, J. R., Obaidi, M., Coenen, A., Vasseljen, V. D., & Gill, P. (2021). What makes a terrorist?
Muslims’ and non-Muslims’ lay perceptions of risk factors and their consequences for counter-
terrorism policy support. Routledge Taylor & Francis Group [Online], 1-25.
https://doi.org/10.31234/osf.io/ju42c
Hi Matthew,
I enjoyed reading your discussion post on this week’s topic. I agree that the advancement in
technology has also advanced the tactics used by terrorists. Hence, as terrorists become
progressively sophisticated in their operations through adopting new technologies and
implementing various security measures to avoid detection, the demand for counter-terrorist
operations and technologies has also increased (Wagner, 2007). For example, terrorists spend
ample time planning before setting up internet accounts, servers, and access points to ensure they
are not easily traced. Similarly, they frequently change SIM cards and cell phones to avoid
detection and stay under the radar.
HLSC 610-D01: Understanding Terrorism and Homeland Security
Nevertheless, despite all the technological advancements, many terrorist groups still gravitate
toward less sophisticated and technologically enabled terrorism practices because weapons are
easily accessible. These less sophisticated tactics can still create an environment of fear, where
terrorist violence can take place anywhere, anytime, and by anyone. For example, von
Rosenbach (2021) noted that while guns, knives, and cars are easily accessible, bioterrorism may
possibly be the next weapon of choice because commercially available tools and services to
design and weaponize new biological agents are easily accessible to intelligent terrorists.
References:
von Rosenbach, A. (2021). Fighting fear and the future of technology-enabled terrorism.
Atlantisch Perspectief, 45(3), 31–35. https://www.jstor.org/stable/48638243
Wagner, A. (2007). Intelligence for counter‐terrorism: Technology and methods. Journal of
Policing, Intelligence and Counter Terrorism, 2(2), 48-
61. https://doi.org/10.1080/18335300.2007.9686897
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