Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

Digital Commons Network

Open Access. Powered by Scholars. Published by Universities.®

PDF

University of South Florida

Journal of Strategic Security

Violent extremism

Publication Year

Articles 1 - 4 of 4

Full-Text Articles in Entire DC Network

Promoting Cognitive Complexity Among Yezidi Youth Impacted By Isis In Kurdistan, Iraq, Sara Savage, Jessica Francar, Kristin Perry Jan 2023

Promoting Cognitive Complexity Among Yezidi Youth Impacted By Isis In Kurdistan, Iraq, Sara Savage, Jessica Francar, Kristin Perry

Journal of Strategic Security

This article reports on the results of an intervention to promote the reintegration of Yezidi children and youth in the Kurdistan Region of Iraq, who had been in ISIS captivity or were displaced by ISIS, by increasing their cognitive complexity through experiential learning. The article explores the challenges faced by this demographic, including trauma and exclusion. It looks at the impact of a group-based curriculum designed to increase cognitive complexity (measured by integrative complexity), and discusses how the intervention addressed socio-cognitive needs in order to support reintegration. The intervention was piloted with young people associated with ISIS and those displaced …


Challenges In Mali, The Importance Of Legitimate Governance In Combatting Terrorism And Violent Extremism, Gerald Krieger Oct 2022

Challenges In Mali, The Importance Of Legitimate Governance In Combatting Terrorism And Violent Extremism, Gerald Krieger

Journal of Strategic Security

The Greater Sahel is one of the world’s most troubled regions. Within the region, Mali is the regional lynchpin and has been the focus of French efforts to eradicate terrorist groups. The essay seeks to answer the question, “Why has violence increased and terrorist cells continued to thrive in Mali despite international efforts?” Although the issue is more complicated and nuanced, corruption and poor governance are significant factors in increased violence. Local leaders focus on militarization and violent suppression to maintain control over larger cities while neglecting rural communities. These actions undermine the government’s legitimacy, exacerbated by rampant corruption. Secondary …


Networks Of Threats: Interconnection, Interaction, Intermediation, Julien Theron Oct 2021

Networks Of Threats: Interconnection, Interaction, Intermediation, Julien Theron

Journal of Strategic Security

The rapidly changing global security environment requires to constantly adapt our understanding of threats. The findings of this paper confirm that threats interact with each other on three levels. Security, conflict, war, and strategic studies converge to build a new qualitative theoretical framework for threat analysis. Shaping the global security environment, threats communicate on three levels. Firstly, the interconnection of agents with similar ideological and/or strategic motivations connects threats. Secondly, interaction exacerbates incidental threats through cooperation, competition, and convergence. Thirdly, intermediation occurs between antagonistic threats trying to achieve common intermediary objectives. These networks are driven by agents maximizing their impact …


Continuity And Change In The Operational Dynamics Of The Islamic State, James L. Regens, Nick Mould Apr 2017

Continuity And Change In The Operational Dynamics Of The Islamic State, James L. Regens, Nick Mould

Journal of Strategic Security

In this article we estimate the influence of leadership changes on the operational dynamics associated with terrorist attacks conducted by the Islamic State and its predecessors. Because the focus of our research is empirical, the study uses data for 2,131 successful attacks between October 2002 and December 2014 to examine differentials in operational tempo, attack severity, primary tactics employed, and principal targets. The data are aggregated on a monthly basis to estimate the probabilities associated with specific attack sequences in terms of the following primary tactics: (1) firearms, (2) explosives, (3) hostage-taking/kidnapping, and (4) attacks involving combinations of (1), (2), …