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Asymmetric Threats: Analyzing The Future Of Nuclear Terrorism & Cyber Attacks; The Value Of Deterrence Theory For Addressing The Challenges Of Nuclear Terrorism In The Age Of 21st Century Cybersecurity, Oliver Demmert-Shelfo
Asymmetric Threats: Analyzing The Future Of Nuclear Terrorism & Cyber Attacks; The Value Of Deterrence Theory For Addressing The Challenges Of Nuclear Terrorism In The Age Of 21st Century Cybersecurity, Oliver Demmert-Shelfo
Political Science & International Studies | Senior Theses
Given the rapid development and ease of access to technology, the threat of extremist organizations utilizing cyberspace as a means to target critical American strategic infrastructure is of increasing concern. The risk posed by the acquisition of fissile material, sabotage, or use of a nuclear device by an extremist organization has been exasperated due to technological development outpacing strategy. Despite policy-makers’ attempts to protect the public from cyber-attacks and nuclear terrorism, the federal policies in place have failed to account for the continual evolution of technology and the gaps in security that this advancement brings. Through examining documents from congressional …
Utilizing Strategic Culture As A Tool To Tailor U.S. Deterrence Policy Towards Iran, Ryan P. Taylor
Utilizing Strategic Culture As A Tool To Tailor U.S. Deterrence Policy Towards Iran, Ryan P. Taylor
MSU Graduate Theses
The geostrategic environment since the end of the Cold War has drastically changed the way United States (U.S.) policymakers develop strategies to combat a wide range of hostile threats facing the country, especially in the field of the deterrence of weapons of mass destruction (WMDs). Iran is such an actor, who poses one of the greater proliferation threats in the world and continues to commit hostile actions in the Middle East. In this post-Cold War environment, it is imperative that the United States develop a tailored deterrence strategy to meet this challenge. Past deterrence strategies popular during the bipolar era …
A Content Analysis Of Jihadist Magazines: Theoretical Perspectives, Catalina M. Udani
A Content Analysis Of Jihadist Magazines: Theoretical Perspectives, Catalina M. Udani
Honors Undergraduate Theses
During its violent spread across the Middle East, the Islamic State of Iraq and Sham (ISIS) amassed both a local and international following in large part due to its usage of emergent media distribution. Beginning in 2014, ISIS’s Ministry of Media published an English-language magazine, Dabiq, disseminating its issues through online platforms. Dabiq and its successor Rumiyah both serve as propagandistic recruitment material for ISIS’s international community as well as broadcasting the message of the jihadist movement to ISIS’s enemies. This study analyzed ISIS’s publications using a qualitative content analysis in order to identify jihadist recruitment strategies through the perspectives …
The Longevity Of Religious Terrorist Organizations, William John Hughes
The Longevity Of Religious Terrorist Organizations, William John Hughes
Senior Projects Spring 2017
Senior Project submitted to The Division of Social Studies of Bard College.
Automatically Detecting The Resonance Of Terrorist Movement Frames On The Web, Ugochukwu O. Etudo
Automatically Detecting The Resonance Of Terrorist Movement Frames On The Web, Ugochukwu O. Etudo
Theses and Dissertations
The ever-increasing use of the internet by terrorist groups as a platform for the dissemination of radical, violent ideologies is well documented. The internet has, in this way, become a breeding ground for potential lone-wolf terrorists; that is, individuals who commit acts of terror inspired by the ideological rhetoric emitted by terrorist organizations. These individuals are characterized by their lack of formal affiliation with terror organizations, making them difficult to intercept with traditional intelligence techniques. The radicalization of individuals on the internet poses a considerable threat to law enforcement and national security officials. This new medium of radicalization, however, also …
A Theoretical Analysis Of Isis Indoctrination And Recruitment, Trevor Hawkins
A Theoretical Analysis Of Isis Indoctrination And Recruitment, Trevor Hawkins
Capstone Projects and Master's Theses
This paper is an attempt to use various theories in the social sciences as a tool to understand the mechanisms employed in ISIS indoctrination and recruitment tactics. There is a discussion of theories that have been developed in the field of influence psychology, rationalizing the context of indoctrination within this area of study. There is a discussion of proposedly relevant materials in philosophy, specifically simulacrum and linguistic deconstruction. These components are extrapolated to interpret a first person account of ISIS indoctrination, the first-ever ISIS recruitment film, and a Radical-Islamist periodical Inspire Magazine. Using a form of propaganda film analysis, and …
Headhunting: Evaluating The Disruptive Capacity Of Leadership Decapitation On Terrorist Organizations, Ted Clemens Iv
Headhunting: Evaluating The Disruptive Capacity Of Leadership Decapitation On Terrorist Organizations, Ted Clemens Iv
Dissertations, Theses, and Capstone Projects
Leadership decapitation -- the practice of removing a leader from a position of authority through targeted killing (i.e. assassination) or arrest -- has long been a feature of counter-terrorism and counter-insurgency strategies the world over. Still, how effective is the practice of leadership decapitation in actually bringing a halt to, or even impeding, terrorist activity? Can removing top leaders of terrorist enclaves from power disrupt their groups to the point of organizational degradation or dissolution? And lastly, because no two terrorist groups are the same; when a terrorist group experiences leadership loss, how can the group be expected to react? …
Support For Suicide Terrorism In Egypt, Matthew J. Pastoria
Support For Suicide Terrorism In Egypt, Matthew J. Pastoria
Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects
Evaluating the factors that affect support for suicide terrorism in Egypt based upon the PEW Research Center's Global Attitudes Project data from 2014.
The Psychology Of Terrorism And Radicalization, Gina K. Dejacimo
The Psychology Of Terrorism And Radicalization, Gina K. Dejacimo
Williams Honors College, Honors Research Projects
Terrorism and radicalized political groups are an ever-growing subsection of the American and international news cycles. Mainstream media outlets tend to focus on the atrocious actions of terrorists, leaving the American public without a true understanding of what encourages someone to become a violent, radicalized extremist. This paper intends to investigate possible psychological factors that can predict a person’s likelihood to become radicalized and participate in a salafi jihadi terrorist campaign. If such psychological conditions exist, perhaps they are the key to preventing radicalization in the first place, and in turn, the key to preventing any terrorist activity. What other …
Vanguards No Longer: Challenges To Al Qaeda Leadership Of The Jihadist Community, Byron J. Doerfer
Vanguards No Longer: Challenges To Al Qaeda Leadership Of The Jihadist Community, Byron J. Doerfer
Senior Theses and Projects
2014 marks the first time that al Qaeda’s supremacy in the Jihadist community has been challenged. al Qaeda’s former franchise in Iraq, now called the “Islamic State,” has declared the organization responsible for 9/11 “Tyrants” and “Apostates.” The Islamic State has begun openly attacking al Qaeda’s official franchise in Syria, Jabhat al Nusra. These events are a consequence of the strategy of franchising that al Qaeda undertook following 9/11. The root of the issue between al Qaeda and its former Iraqi franchise is over a difference over the importance placed on popular support as a key ingredient in achieving the …
Cyber Warfare: Explaining The Absence Of Physical Force Responses By States, Conor Mcfarland
Cyber Warfare: Explaining The Absence Of Physical Force Responses By States, Conor Mcfarland
Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects
This essay examines the unwillingness of nation-states to use physical force in response to cyber warfare. Specifically, the paper claims that uncertainties regarding international law, state sovereignty, definitions of the use of force, and the problem of attribution in cyberspace contribute to a state’s decision to forego responding to cyber-attacks by using physical force attacks in other domains (i.e., land, air, sea, and space). These concepts are considered within the framework of Neorealist theory and in reference to the literature on cyber warfare. The 2007 series of cyber-attacks on Estonia are utilized as a case study to further examine the …