The Terrorist Identity: Explaining the Terrorist Threat (Alternative Criminology)

311 Pages·2006·0.75 MB·English

by  Michael Arena

The Terrorist Identity
Alternative Criminology Series
General Editor: Jeff Ferrell
Pissing on Demand: Workplace Drug Testing and the
Rise of the Detox Industry
Ken Tunnell
Empire of Scrounge: Inside the Urban Underground of
Dumpster Diving, Trash Picking, and Street Scavenging
Jeff Ferrell
Prison, Inc.: A Convict Exposes Life inside a Private Prison
by K.C. Carceral, edited by Thomas J. Bernard
The Terrorist Identity: Explaining the Terrorist Threat
Michael P. Arena and Bruce A. Arrigo
The
Terrorist
Identity
Explaining the Terrorist Threat
Michael P. Arena and Bruce A. Arrigo
a
NEW YORK UNIVERSITY PRESS
New York and London
new york university press
New York and London
www.nyupress.org
© 2006by New York University
All rights reserved
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Arena, Michael P.
The terrorist identity : explaining the terrorist threat / Michael P.
Arena and Bruce A. Arrigo.
p. cm.
Includes bibliographical references and index.
ISBN-13: 978-0-8147-0715-9(cloth : alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 0-8147-0715-7(cloth : alk. paper)
ISBN-13: 978-0-8147-0716-6(pbk. : alk. paper)
ISBN-10: 0-8147-0716-5(pbk. : alk. paper)
1. Terrorism. 2. Terrorists—Psychology. 3. Group identity
I. Arrigo, Bruce A. II. Title.
HV6431.A755 2006 363.325—dc22
2006010033
New York University Press books are printed on acid-free paper,
and their binding materials are chosen for strength and durability.
Manufactured in the United States of America
c 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
p 10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
For my wife and family, who have provided their
unwavering support. —MPA
For my children, Rebecca and Anthony, again and
always. —BAA

Contents
Acknowledgments ix
Part I
1 Introduction 3
2 The Psychology of Terrorism 14
3 The Sociology of Identity 44
Part II
4 An Overview of Five Extremist Organizations 77
5 The Provisional Irish Republican Army 101
6 The Islamic Resistance Movement (Hamas) 127
7 The Peruvian Shining Path 152
8 The Liberation Tigers of Tamil Eelam 175
9 Racist Skinheads 199
Part III
10 Conclusion 227
Notes 255
References 275
Index 293
About the Author 301
vii

Acknowledgments
The authors wish to express a debt of gratitude to several
individuals who helped this book come to fruition. We thank our editor
at NYU Press, Ilene Kalish, for agreeing to take on this project and see-
ing it through to final print, and our reviewers for their insightful com-
mentary and suggestions.
ix