Psychology Commons^™

Psychological Vulnerabilities And Propensities For Involvement In Violent Extremism, Randy Borum

Randy Borum

Research on the psychology of terrorism has argued against the idea that most terrorist behavior is caused by mental illness or by a terrorist personality. This article suggests an alternative line of inquiry – an individual psychology of terrorism that explores how otherwise normal mental states and processes, built on characteristic attitudes, dispositions, inclinations, and intentions, might affect a person’s propensity for involvement with violent extremist groups and actions. It uses the concepts of “mindset” – a relatively enduring set of attitudes, dispositions, and inclinations – and worldview as the basis of a psychological “climate,” within which various vulnerabilities and …

Seven Pillars Of Small War Power, Randy Borum

Randy Borum

We may need to modify our traditional “center of gravity” analysis to accommodate multiple centers of gravity in an asymmetric diffusion of power. Insurgencies and movements of resistance are dynamic, living systems powered by social dynamics.65 Successful insurgent movements leverage their available sources of power to gain the sympathy of the broader population and to mobilize a small cadre of armed forces. For the insurgent, these dynamics—the power of rising expectations, the power of the people, the power of the underdog, the power of agility, the power of resistance, the power of security, and the power of belonging—become the pillars …

Psychology Of Terrorism, Randy Borum

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

Understanding Terrorist Psychology, Randy Borum

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

The Science Of Interpersonal Trust, Randy Borum

Randy Borum

Interpersonal trust - a willingness to accept vulnerability or risk based on expectations regarding another person’s behavior – is a vitally important concept for human behavior, affecting our interactions both with adversaries and competitors as well as with allies and friends. Indeed, interpersonal trust could be said to be responsible in part for nudging competitors towards becoming allies, or – if betrayed – leading friends to become adversaries.

This document summarizes the state of the art (and science) in interpersonal trust research, describing how researchers define trust and its components, exploring a range of theories about how people decide whether …

Crisis Intervention Teams May Prevent Arrests Of People With Mental Illnesses, Randy Borum, Stephanie Franz

Randy Borum

Historically, as many as 7–10% of US police contacts have involved persons with mental illnesses, with a disproportionate amount of these encounters resulting in arrest, usually for minor offenses. Crisis Intervention Teams (CIT) were created, and have proliferated, to ameliorate this problem by offering a specialized response and serving – at least informally – as a liaison between mental health services and police departments. Because preventing unnecessary arrests is one of CIT’s principal objectives, this study examined the arrest rates of persons with mental illnesses and the number of arrests that might have been prevented after the implementation of a …

What Can Be Done About School Shootings?: A Review Of The Evidence, Randy Borum, Dewey Cornell, William Modzeleski, Shane Jimerson

Randy Borum

School shootings have generated great public concern and fostered a widespread impression that schools are unsafe for many students; this article counters those misapprehensions by examining empirical evidence of school and community violence trends and reviewing evidence on best practices for preventing school shootings. Many of the school safety and security measures deployed in response to school shootings have little research support, and strategies such as zero tolerance discipline and student profiling have been widely criticized as unsound practices. Threat assessment is identified as a promising strategy for violence prevention that merits further study. The article concludes with an overview …

Insights From Past Experience With Human Dynamics In Military Operations, Randy Borum

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

Interview And Interrogation: A Perspective And Update From The Usa, Randy Borum, Michael Gelles, Steven Kleinman

Randy Borum

With a renewed interest in, and reliance on, human intelligence (HUMINT), an opportunity exists for the USG to re-examine its policies and practices for interviewing and interrogation to discern whether or not it is relying on best practices that are consistent with American values, international human rights and legal requirements. It is clear that, to protect national security interests, the USG is now – and for the foreseeable future will be – required to gather information form human sources either for purposes of intelligence gathering or for investigations that may lead to criminal prosecution. Broadly speaking, the purpose of these …

The Psychology Of Leaking National Security Secrets: Implications For Homeland Security, Randy Borum, Scott Shumate, Mario Scalora

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

Middle Eastern Mindset: Operational Analysis And Implications, Scott Shumate, Randy Borum, James Turner

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

Interviewing Al-Qaeda-Related Subjects: A Law Enforcement Perspective, Michael Gelles, Robert Mcfadden, Randy Borum, Bryan Vossekuil

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

Anarchist Direct Actions: A Challenge For Law Enforcement, Randy Borum

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

Al-Qaeda's Operational Evolution: Behavioral And Organizational Perspectives, Randy Borum, Michael Gelles

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

The Role Of Operational Research In Counterterrorism, Randy Borum, Robert Fein, Bryan Vossekuil, Michael Gelles, Scott Shumate

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

Understanding The Terrorist Mindset, Randy Borum

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

Profiling Hazards: Profiling In Counterterrorism And Homeland Security, Randy Borum

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

Comparing Outcomes Of Major Models Of Police Responses To Mental Health Emergencies, Randy Borum

Randy Borum

OBJECTIVE: The study compared three models of police responses to incidents involving people thought to have mental illnesses to determine how often specialized professionals responded and how often they were able to resolve cases without arrest. METHODS: Three study sites representing distinct approaches to police handling of incidents involving persons with mental illness were examined-Birmingham, Alabama; and Knoxville and Memphis, Tennessee. At each site, records were examined for approximately 100 police dispatch calls for "emotionally disturbed persons" to examine the extent to which the specially trained professionals responded. To determine differences in case dispositions, records were also examined for 100 …

Assessing Threats Of Targeted Group Violence: Contributions From Social Psychology, Randy Borum, M. Pynchon

Randy Borum

No abstract provided.

Detection Of Deception In Law Enforcement Applicants: A Preliminary Investigation, Randy Borum, Harley Stock

Randy Borum

Using the MMPIand the IPI, the present study examined the differences in psychometric defensiveness between two groups of law enforcement applicants: applicants identified as being deceptive and a comparison group of candidates for whom no deception was indicated. Significant differences were found on the traditional validity (minimization) scales for both instruments as well as several supplemental scales and indexes from the MMPI. A new index (Es-K) from the MMPI showed a highly significant difference between groups and good classification accuracy. The results suggest that deceptive applicants show more defensiveness on psychometric testing and that test results may assist in raising …