Social and Behavioral Sciences Commons^™

Exploring Police Active Shooter Preparedness In Michigan: A Grounded Study Of Police Preparedness To Active Shooter Incidents, Developing A Normative Model, Daryl Darwin Green

Dissertations

On September 22, 2013, at a memorial for people killed in a September 16, 2013 active shooter incident, President Barack Obama stated that the United States “can’t accept” the killing of 12 people at Washington’s Navy Yard as “inevitable” and that the shooting should “lead to some sort of transformation” (Merica, 2013). Active shooter incidents remain a constant societal concern that are deserving of continued academic research. The following grounded theory study examined the active shooter incident preparedness systems of police agencies in three Michigan counties. The principal investigator observed the strategic and tactical objectives of police agencies relative to …

Political Motive And Bail: The Effect Of Prosecutorial Strategies On Pretrial Decisions In Federal Terrorism Trials, Michael John Clanton

Graduate Theses and Dissertations

The purpose of this study is to understand how prosecutorial strategies affect pretrial decisions in U.S. terrorism trials and how pretrial decisions in turn affect the disposition of those trials. This research builds off of the work of Smith and Damphousse (1996) which compared terrorism indictees to traditional federal offenders. They found that the use of explicit politicality as a prosecution strategy was a significant predictor of both disposition and the sentence length in terrorism trials. This study focuses on the question of whether the use of an explicitly political prosecution strategy impacts pretrial decisions in terrorism cases and whether …

Update On Geospatial Patterns Of Antecedent Behavior Among Perpetrators In The American Terrorism Study (Ats), Brent L. Smith, Paxton Roberts, Kelly Damphousse

Research Projects

As part of the Terrorism and Extremist Violence in the United States (TEVUS) database integration effort, researchers at the Terrorism Research Center in Fulbright College at the University of Arkansas and the University of Oklahoma have been adding: 1) federal terrorism court cases and associated data and 2) incident and antecedent geospatial data from these court cases to the American Terrorism Study (ATS). The goal of the project is to examine geospatial patterns in perpetrator behavior and determine if the patterns identified in earlier studies have changed significantly. The ATS allows examination of a number of different units of analysis. …

On Learning And Unlearning, Katherine M. Patterson

SURGE

I remember passing our lunch lady–the nice one with a big bleach-blond afro. She was perched on an elementary-school-sized desk, eyes fixated to the television. I glanced at the screen on the way into my classroom while my teacher hesitated in the hallway, whispering to the other adults. She reentered the room a few minutes later to explain.

In the following months, my television provided me with one of the most formative, practical and comprehensive educational experiences of my life. First it was vocabulary building, with the words like “hi-jacker,” and “terrorist.” Then it was physics, learning that inertia is …

The Contextual Presidency: The Negative Shift In Presidential Immigration Rhetoric, C. Damien Arthur

Political Science Faculty Research

Party platforms from 1993 through 2008 show a positive approach to immigration policy. Presidential rhetoric, however, does not match the tone of the platforms. There are negative frames (illegality, criminality, terrorism, and economic threats) in nearly 50% of immigration speeches. We argue that social context motivates presidents to talk about immigration negatively. This analysis provides insight into rhetoric as responsive to context rather than a mechanism of power. We coded each speech on immigration from Presidents Bill Clinton, George W. Bush, and Barack Obama, and found statistically significant results that show that immigration rhetoric is more negative when certain social …

The Transformation Of The Pkk (Kurdistan Workers' Party): Exploring Domestic, Regional, And Global Dynamics, Akin Guneri

Graduate Program in International Studies Theses & Dissertations

The main purpose of this study is to explore the underlying factors behind the political and ideological transformation of the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) since its foundation. Through the detailed analysis of the role of Turkey's internal versus external factors on the evolution of the PKK over time, this work finds that changing political developments in the Middle East were more influential than Turkey's shifting domestic political environment. Hypothesis testing revealed that the 1991 Gulf War, 2003 Iraq War, changing political dynamics of the Middle East following Syria's Arab Spring, and policy changes worldwide implemented after the 9/11 terrorist attacks …

A Rhetorical Analysis Of Messages To America By Osama Bin Laden, Meredith Taylor

Honors Projects

The purpose of this paper is to analyze bin Laden’s argumentation and rhetorical techniques in three speeches addressed to the American population. Persuasive techniques that were used will be described as well as the historical context surrounding the timing of each speech’s release. These speeches will be examined using Campbell and Burkholder’s “Three Stages of Rhetorical Criticism” as outlined in the second edition of Critiques of Contemporary Rhetoric.

Perceived Coping & Concern Predict Terrorism Preparedness In Australia, Garry Stevens, Kingsley Agho, Melanie Taylor, Alison L. Jones, Margo Barr, Beverley Raphael

Alison L Jones

Background In the aftermath of major terrorist incidents research shows population shifts towards protective behaviours, including specific preparedness and avoidance responses. Less is known about individual preparedness in populations with high assumed threat but limited direct exposure, such as Australia. In this study we aimed to determine whether individuals with high perceived coping and higher concern would show greater preparedness to respond to terrorism threats. Methods Adults in New South Wales (NSW) completed terrorism perception and response questions as part of computer assisted telephone interviews (CATI) in 2010 (N=2038). Responses were weighted against the NSW population. Multiple logistic regression analyses …

Recognizing 'Game Changers' In Extrapolation Models: An Application To Counterinsurgency, Micah Dolcort-Silver

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Recent empirical studies suggest insurgencies may be accurately described by aggregated extrapolation models, such that past behavior becomes the best predictor for future action. I argue that aggregated extrapolation models possess two flaws that make it a poor choice for examining insurgencies. First, aggregated extrapolation models ask the wrong question. The more interesting question is to ask when present action is no longer explainable by past behavior. Secondly, aggregate models mask changes that a phenomenon undergoes over time which are only revealed upon disaggregating the data. Starting with a model and findings provided by Neil Johnson, I use casualty data …

The Iranian Nuclear Crisis: An Assessment, Gawdat Bahgat

The US Army War College Quarterly: Parameters

No abstract provided.

Youth Bulges, Poor Institutional Quality And Missing Migration Opportunities - Triggers Of And Potential Counter-Measures For Terrorism In Mena, Rahel Schomaker

Topics in Middle Eastern and North African Economies

During the last few decades, a convolute of economic literature has emerged which focuses on the effects of demography, in particular the existence of so-called “youth bulges”, on economic growth and performance (for an overview see e.g. Bloom et al. 2001). The approach in our paper extends previous research to include potentially negative growth effects of a large share of young people in the Middle East and North Africa (MENA) not only via the “channel” of unemployment, but also through their potential as a “trigger” for political unrest and domestic terrorism, which have been identified in economic literature as important …

Terrorism And Illicit Drug Prices: Does A Drug-Terror Nexus Exist? A Regression Analysis Of The Relationship Between Illicit Drug Prices And Terrorist Events, Abigail Burnette

Undergraduate Theses and Capstone Projects

Since the September 11th, 2001 terrorist attacks on the United States, global counterterrorism policies have increasingly targeted terrorist financing sources. These increased financial counterterrorism regulations have diverted the traditional sources and methods of terrorist funding, including illicit drug revenue streams. The purpose of this paper is to measure the relationship between terrorist events (both domestic and transnational) and the prices of cocaine and heroin. Using regression analysis, I find that the annual U.S. illicit drug prices of heroin are statistically significant with domestic and transnational terrorist events. These results suggest that future counterterrorism policies should continue to be used in …

A Matter Of Faith: U.S. Cable News Coverage And Definitions Of Terrorism, Adam Yehia Elrashidi

Media Studies - Theses

What makes an act of violence an act of terrorism? This qualitative study examines the ways in which three U.S.-based cable news networks--MSNBC, CNN, and Fox News--reported and contextualized four violent events within frameworks of terrorism: the mass shooting at Ft. Hood near Killeen, Texas (2009); the mass shooting near Tucson, Arizona (2011); a suicidal plane crash into an IRS building in Austin, Texas (2010); and the attempted bombing of the Federal Reserve in New York, New York (2012).

Although details between these four events seem analogous, the three networks appeared to contextualize only the Ft. Hood rampage and the …

Who Will Tell The Story? Terrorism's Relationship With The International News Media, Katherine Eugenis

UNLV Theses, Dissertations, Professional Papers, and Capstones

Terrorism feeds on an atmosphere of fear and uncertainty. In order for a terrorist group to achieve its purpose, its activities must be known to a mass audience. Due to the often isolated nature of the conflicts in which they are involved, terrorists groups must attract and maintain the attention of the mass media, through which they access a broader audience and gain salience. This relationship begs the question: will less media attention lead to less terrorism as groups lose their audience and are forced to use legitimate means of enacting change? This thesis analyzes the pattern of media trends …

Ua12/2/1 College Heights Herald, Vol. 88, No. 49, Wku Student Affairs

WKU Archives Records

WKU campus newspaper reporting campus, athletic and Bowling Green, Kentucky news.

• Harrison, Taylor. 5 Percent Increase Denied – Tuition
• Koch, Cameron & Taylor Harrison. WKU Reacts to the Boston Bombings – Boston Marathon Bombing
• Boyd, Kayla. X Marks the Spot: Students Find Favorite Places Around Town – Sterling Franklin, Chad Cown
• Massa, James. Smokers: Pick Up Your Butts – Tobacco
• Boyd, Kara. Students Prepare for Fourth Annual Rip the Runway Show – Fashion, Black Student Alliance
• Holloway, Kaely. WKU to Offer Opportunities to Serve During National Volunteer Week
• Greek Week 2013 Schedule
• Lanter, Austin. WKU Heads to South Alabama with …

Human Geography Without A Map, William E. Demars, Laurel Rosenberger, Jimmy Rogers, Trent Hardee

Arthur Vining Davis High Impact Fellows Projects

Course materials developed for a 9th grade course on human geography, focusing on human rights, terrorism, and globalization.

Developing A Game-Theoritic Analysis Of Terrorism, Matthew A. Love

Masters Theses

My research demonstrates the applicability of game theory to analyzing terrorism through consideration of multiple examples. These examples provide a foundation upon which further research involving the application of game theory to terrorism can be explored.

My research contributes to a growing body of literature, especially since the terrorist attacks on the United States on September 11, 2001, in which it has been argued that terrorists are rational agents and, because of that, game theory can be usefully applied to an analysis of terrorism. My research further supports this conclusion.

An Analysis Of The Effectiveness Of The Director Of National Intelligence (Dni) In Uniting The Intelligence Community, Bethany G. Pico

Senior Honors Theses

September 11, 2001 marks the date of the largest attack on American soil since the Japanese attack on Pearl Harbor during World War II. This event not only changed the lives of individuals who suffered intense loss but changed the course of American history in several ways. This paper focuses specifically on the changes in the intelligence community since the attacks. The attacks that 9/11 presented flaws in the system created demonstrating weakness as a direct result of the immense destruction that occurred. The thesis of this paper is to analyze, assess, and draw conclusions on the effectiveness of the …

Religious Ideology And Terrorism: Anthropological Considerations, Alan R. Sandstrom

Alan R. Sandstrom

No abstract provided.

The Impacts Of Terrorism And Capitalist Incorporation On Indigenous Americans, Asafa Jalata

Sociology Publications and Other Works

This article demonstrates the connections between terrorism , colonial state formation, and the development of the capitalist world system, or globalization, exploring theconsequences of colonial terrorism on indigenous American peoples. First, the piece introduces the central argument and conceptualizes and theorizes terrorism. Second, it examines the structural aspects of colonial terrorism by connecting it to specific colonial policies and practices. Third, it explain the ideological justifications tha Euro-American colonial settlers and their descendants used In committing crimes against humanity and dispossessing the homelands of indigenous Americans, as well as in amassing wealth/capital by ignoring moral, ethical ,and philosophical issues and …

Port And Pipeline Politics (Pakistan Observer), Shams Uz Zaman Mr.

Mr. Shams uz Zaman

Explains the correlation between terrorism in Pakistan and developmental projects considered problematic by the US.

Packaging Inspiration: Al Qaeda's Digital Magazine Inspire And Self-Radicalization, Susan Currie Sivek

Faculty Presentations

Inspire magazine, a digital publication of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, seeks to motivate potential terrorists to carry out attacks in the West. The magazine has seemed to be effective, resulting in its connection to a number of recent plots. This presentation discusses the magazine’s potential for aiding prospective terrorists through the self-radicalization process.

Olive Branch Or Bellicosity (Pakistan Observer), Shams Uz Zaman Mr.

Mr. Shams uz Zaman

Differentiates between the options of talking to militants or taking military action.

Terrorism And Violent Conflict: Women's Agency, Leadership, And Responses, Candice Ortbals, Lori Poloni-Staudinger

Candice D. Ortbals

This book explores how gender intersects with political violence, and particularly terrorism. We ask how gender relations and understandings of femininity and masculinity influence political violence, which includes politics related to terrorism, state terrorism, and genocide. We investigate how women cope with and influence the politics of terrorism and genocide. The book’s goals are descriptive and analytical. We (1) describe in what ways women are present (and/or perceived as absent) in political contexts involving violence, and (2) analyze what gender assumptions, identities, and frames women face and themselves express and act upon regarding political violence encountered in their lives. The …

Incumbent Violence And Insurgent Tactics: The Effects Of Incumbent Violence On Popular Support For Guerrilla Warfare And Terrorism, Jonathan Williams

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

Insurgency has two main strategies, guerrilla warfare and terrorism, which should be treated as linked, but distinct, strategies. This thesis examines the role of incumbent violence in leading insurgents to select one, or both, of these strategies. It argues that incumbent violence can create support for insurgency by causing fear and a desire for revenge and reshaping the social structures of a community. It also argues that incumbent violence increases popular support for terrorism in particular by creating outbidding incentives and desires to respond in kind to civilian deaths and as a way of punishing norm violations against attacking civilians …

Packaging Inspiration: Al Qaeda’S Digital Magazine Inspire In The Self-Radicalization Process, Susan Currie Sivek

Faculty Publications

Al Qaeda is today a fragmented organization, and its strategic communication efforts now focus largely on recruiting individuals in the West to carry out “individual jihad” in their home countries. One Al Qaeda–affiliated publication, Inspire, represents an unusual use of the digital magazine format and content for recruitment. This study examines the content and design of Inspire to determine how the magazine may advance the self-radicalization that it seeks to induce in its readers. This analysis finds that the magazine weaves together jihadist ideology, a narrow interpretation of Islam, and appropriations of Western popular culture to maximize the publication’s …

Governmental Responses To Terrorism: Creating Costs And Benefits, Kenneth Klose

Electronic Theses and Dissertations

This thesis assesses four governmental responses to terrorism: conciliation, denial, legal restriction, and violence, each of which may be focused on an organization or its leaders. The theory makes predictions on the resulting frequency and severity of terrorism. Unless responses reduce an organization’s capacity or desire to attack, the frequency of attacks may be reduced, while the severity continues to increase. The theory is tested using a time series regression analysis of the effects of government action on terrorism in Algeria and the Philippines. In general, the results show that conciliation may led to increases in terrorism in the short …

Suicide Terrorism: Understanding The Mindset And Motives, Joshua Daniel Goss

Online Theses and Dissertations

Suicide Terrorism plays major roles in devastating and destructing cities and their people while communities try to fight the Global War on Terrorism. The devastation and destruction can either be focused on individuals or a certain infrastructure. There are two tactics of executing the acts of suicide terrorism; strapping explosives to their bodies and or steering some sort of transportation into a place of gathering. The methodology of this study is an auto-ethnography. The auto-ethnography is designed to find understanding of personal experiences using a qualitative method of study. Understanding the motives and mindset of suicide terrorist can be very …

Analyzing The Effectiveness Of Al Qaeda's Online Influence Operations By Means Of Propaganda Theory, David K. Lyons

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

This thesis sought to explore the use of propaganda by al Qaeda through the lenses of established propaganda theorists and theories. Through analyzing former al Qaeda releases and case studies in the context of propaganda theory this thesis established a clearer understanding of the effectiveness of al Qaeda's propaganda. After analyzing the propaganda and case studies it was discovered that the rate of those engaging in attacks based on al Qaeda's online influence operations is insignificant. The concerns that al Qaeda is recruiting numerous individuals to engage in attacks based on its online propaganda operations might be overstated and while …

"Operation Stone Garden": A Case Study Of Legitimation Of Violence And The Consequences For Mexican Immigrants In Chaparral, New Mexico, David Haller Mckenney

Open Access Theses & Dissertations

While globalization is widely theorized in terms of apolitical trans-border flows, this paper argues that the so-called "War on Terror," the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, and the so-called "War on Drugs" have legitimated the use of violence and aggression. This includes criminalization, closure, containment and deportation directed at trans-national flows of immigrants. Immigrants have become conflated with terrorists, drugs, crime and contamination as a generalized "other," to use Simmel's terms; they are typed as suspicious and dangerous strangers. From this perspective I suggest that the rise of contemporary security regimes or "the mobility regime" that emerged well before the …