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Creating Young Martyrs Conditions That Make Dying in a Terrorist Attack Seem Like a Good Idea

Alice LoCicero, Samuel J Sinclair

Book Code: C9690

ISBN: 0-275-99690-5

ISBN-13: 978-0-275-99690-1

DOI:

Praeger Security International General Interest-Cloth

Publication: 8/30/2008

List Price: $39.95 (UK Sterling Price: £22.95)

Availability: Not yet published. (Estimated publication date, 8/30/2008)

Media Type: Hardcover

Trim Size: 6 1/8 x 9 1/4

Subjects:

Series Title: Contemporary Psychology

Endorsement From Tom Pyszczynski, Ph.D,
Professor of Psychology, University of Colorado at Colorado Springs: What could possibly lead young people, in their teens or even younger, to knowingly take their own lives in order to kill others? LoCicero and Sinclair provide thoughtful, original, and provocative answers to this question. Unlike other recent discussions of the motives that drive terrorist violence, the authors take a developmental and cultural perspective, focusing on the evolving mind of the young person who lives in a world in which his or her people are dominated by powerful others and basic human rights and opportunities are scarce. Based on the best modern and classic scholarship and their own in-depth interviews with young and older persons in war-torn regions, they provide a powerful analysis that is sure to add to our understanding of one of the most vexing problems facing today's world.
Endorsement From David M. Rosen, J.D., Ph.D,
Professor of Anthropology and Law, Fairleigh Dickinson University: The importance of this book, based on research in Sri Lanka, lies in its imaginative construction of the real choices faced by children recruited for war. Without minimizing the horror and terror of warfare, it portrays a complex process of decision making that often involves the weighing of personal risk against the pull of other cultural and social forces. The result is a study of child soldiers that avoids the cliché-ridden commentary that informs most studies of this subject and lets us see children as real social actors in times of conflict.
Endorsement From Naresh Gunaratnam,
Clinical Scholar, St. Joseph Mercy Hospital, Ann Arbor, Michigan: The war on terror can never be won with guns, but rather by understanding the forces that drive an individual to become a terrorist and then constructively addressing those forces. This book makes a valuable contribution to our understanding of why children are driven to terrorism. The insights it offers may allow us to formulate policies that deter children at risk from engaging in terrorism.
Endorsement From Arthur J. Kendall Ph.D.,
President, Social Research Consultants
University Park, Maryland: This very readable book lucidly explores the life events through which children become soldiers in terrorist organizations and potential martyrs for their causes. The authors present well-established social and developmental theories from every-day life and use them to interpret these events. By going beyond the realm of individual pathology and considering development in a social environment, they shed light on a horrific phenomenon. The study of terrorism greatly needs such examples of using the psychology learned from our ordinary lives.

Description: The authors explain how and why we must understand the conditions that spur youths to become martyrs by making them think suicide bombings and other acts of self-destructive terrorism are a "good" way to die. LoCicero and Sinclair present cutting-edge research and theory about the political, social, and living conditions that raise the risk of children deciding to join organizations that use terrorist tactics, and, having joined, to volunteer for missions in which they intentionally die while causing death and destruction, in order to make an impact. Equally important, LoCicero and Sinclair offer concrete suggestions about how ordinary Americans can help reduce and prevent terrorism around the globe.

Table of Contents:

Chapter One
Endangered Children
Life in War-Affected Areas
On the Ground
Past Checkpoints, Into Town
Across the Globe
Knowledge, Power, Action
Social Science of Youthful Terrorists
Chapter Two
2007 Madrid: I Declare this Conference Open.
Interdisciplinary Analyses of Aggression and Terrorism
Update on the Social Science of Aggression and Terrorism
The Questions
What is Terrorism?
Defining Terrorism
Defining a Terrorist
Prototypes of Terrorists
Social Scientists Describing Child Terrorists
In the Meantime: Proposal for a Consensus Model
Terrorism and Altruism
Distinguishing Legitimate Militaries from Terrorist Groups
What About Legitimate Grievances?
Could Terrorist Acts Ever be Performed by Normal People?
What about Demographics and Motivation?
What about the Demographics of Child Terrorists?
Comparing Child Terrorists with Child Soldiers
What about Distribution of Wealth and Resources?
A Question that did not come up: Biological Determinism for Aggression
Chapter Three
Twenty-First Century Terrorism and the Development of Youthful Terrorists
Child Soldier, Child Terrorist
Cognitive Development and Youth in War-Affected Areas
Group-Defined Identity
Deciding to Engage in a Terrorist Act: The Youthful Brain
The Ecology of Development
The Propensity to Engage in Terrorist Acts
The Production-Line Analogy
Preventing the Recruitment of Youth as Martyrs
Chapter Four
When the Last Tamil Has Died
When will the war end? Never.
What will it be like when the war ends?
The Irony of a Common Theme
Talking About It
Freedom to Travel
The Privilege of an Education
How old should someone be before joining a fighting force?
Growing up in War-affected Areas
Ethnic Conflict: An Informed Account of a Minority Childs Experience
From the Childs Point of View: Very Young Children in War-Affected Areas
Middle Childhood
Older Children: Thirteen and Beyond
Truth and Lies
Things You Know; Things You Dont Know
It all Looks Clear Now
Credible?
Chapter Five
Victims of 21st Century War: Are We all in This Together?
Costs of War: Young Men and Women
Military Service vs. Rebel Militia
Parents of Youthful Terrorists Who have Died in Attacks
Chain of Events
Creating Martyrs: What Americans Need to Know
Common American Theories About Youthful Terrorists
Radical Differences in Experience
Underscoring the Need for Better Knowledge of the World
Ecological Psychology
A Very Good Cause
A Very Good Cause: What Do They Know and How do They Know It?
Trust and Distrust in the US
How Distrust of News Contributes to Recruitment of Children in War-Affected Areas
Stop Providing Weapons.
Resources
Dont Discount Our Generation
Shared Future: Human Rights, Terrorism, and Youth Around the World
Nuclear Taboo
Very Brief Historical Overview
Contemporary Nuclear Threat
Nuclear Threat
Some Evidence and Scenarios for Possible Nuclear Attack on the United States
Could A Terrorist Organization Obtain a Nuclear Weapon?
Could a Nuclear Weapon be Transported into the US?
Chapter Six
The Fisherman
On a Global Scale: The Fishermans Potential Network
Good guys and bad guys: The bad guys keep on coming.
Managing the Difficult View
Hearts and Minds?
Winning Hearts and Minds: A Modest Proposal
American Compassion and Mercy
Knowing Hearts and Minds
Why try to understand those who would perpetrate violence on innocent people?
Northern Ireland
Challenging misperceptions: Everyday heroism
About the Authors
Series Afterword

LC Card Number: 2008020459

LCC Class: HV6431

Dewey Class: 363


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