PerspectiveHere’s Why Young People Are Attracted to Terrorism
So why do young people continue to be attracted to the ideas of both Islamist and far-right groups? Nikita Malik writes that the decisions by young people to join the ranks of an Islamist or far-right terrorist organization are similar to the decision young people make when deciding to join a crime gang. “Due to similar motivating factors regarding recruitment and retention of members, gangs offer an appropriate framework to youth in terrorist groups. Therefore, there is no need to re-invent the wheel, so to speak,” she writes.
So why do young people continue to be attracted to the ideas of both Islamist and far-right groups? Nikita Malik, the Director of the Centre on Radicalization and Terrorism (CRT) at the Henry Jackson Society, writes in Forbes that she has studied why young people voluntarily join terrorist organizations, or become committed to a violent extremist ideology. She writes that greater sense of agency and intent, as well forethought and research, goes into decisions made by teenagers who choose to commit crimes such as joining or assisting a terrorist group. As is the case with gangs, it is children themselves who operate in groups and encourage each other, often providing material support and logistical planning among themselves.
While no generalizations can be made, there are a few ‘push’ and ‘pull’ factors common to the cases. The first is group mentality, as outlined by the cases of Islamist-related terrorism above. The second is escape from violent home conditions, racism, or lack of opportunities at home. A key pull factor is marriage, and ‘fame’. Many of these cases, particularly those who managed to successfully join terrorist organizations abroad, have become household names. Moreover, once abroad, foreign youth continued to enable to propaganda arm of terrorist groups such as Islamic State, reaching out to friends at home encouraging them to join the organization.
Age is critical to radicalization, as young people tend to be drawn to extreme ideas to help them make sense of the world. While long-term ‘deradicalization’ programs can be effective, longitudinal studies should also focus on how terrorist offenders, like other criminals, tend to grow out of extremely violent ideas with time and experience.
She concludes:
As well as on focus on ‘why’ when understanding preventative approaches, we must also push towards constructive measures to rehabilitate. Due to similar motivating factors regarding recruitment and retention of members, gangs offer an appropriate framework to youth in terrorist groups. Therefore, there is no need to re-invent the wheel, so to speak. Instead, a study of best practices in helping children vulnerable to gangs can inform rehabilitation policy towards youth convicted of terrorism.
