Terrorism and Counterterrorism
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Terrorism and Counterterrorism
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Book Description
Focusing on the phenomenon of terrorism in the age of ISIS/ISIL, Terrorism and Counterterrorism investigates this form of political violence in an international and American context and in light of new and historical trends. In this comprehensive and highly readable text, renowned expert Brigitte Nacos clearly defines terrorism’s diverse causes, actors, and strategies; outlines anti- and counterterrorist responses; and highlights terrorism’s relationship with the public and media. Terrorism and Counterterrorism introduces students to the field’s main debates and helps them critically assess our understanding of, and our strategies for, addressing this complex and enduring issue.
New to the Sixth Edition:
- Additions to terrorist developments since 2016, including the rise and decline of ISIS in Iraq and Syria.
- A significant expansion of the analysis of intelligence gathering and the growth of the U.S. intelligence community in the post-9/11 era.
- Discussion of increasing activities of extremist groups in the so-called alt-right and the ANTIFA movement in the U.S. and abroad.
- More explanations for the making of terrorists, including rational choice theory and new research revealing childhood trauma as a risk factor.
- An enlarged chapter on women and children in terrorism to include suicide missions as family projects.
- A new section on human rights violations in counterterrorism.
Table of Contents
Preface
CHAPTER 1: Introduction: The Terrorist Threat
PART I: Terrorism
CHAPTER 2: The Perennial Debate: What Is Terrorism?
CHAPTER 3: Terrorism in the Global Context
CHAPTER 4: Terrorism in the American Context
CHAPTER 5: Religious Terrorism: Political Violence in the Name of God
CHAPTER 6: The Making of Terrorists: Causes, Conditions, Influences
CHAPTER 7: Women, Children, and Terrorism
CHAPTER 8: Common Threads: Goals, Targets, and Tactics
CHAPTER 9: Organizational Structures and the Financing of Terror
PART II: Counterterrorism
CHAPTER 10: Terrorism and America’s Post-9/11 National Security Strategy
CHAPTER 11: The Utility of Hard and Soft Power in Counterterrorism
CHAPTER 12: Balancing Security, Liberty, and Human Rights
CHAPTER 13: The Crucial Role of Intelligence
PART III: Terrorism in the News Media and on the Internet
CHAPTER 14: Terrorist Propaganda and the Mainstream Media
CHAPTER 15: Terror and Hate in Cyberspace
CHAPTER 16: Conclusion: Living with Terrorist Threats
APPENDIX: Major Terrorist Incidents since the Late 1970s
Author(s)
Biography
Brigitte L. Nacos teaches political science at Columbia University and was a long-time U.S. correspondent for newspapers in Germany.
Reviews
The main strength is that the book is comprehensive and updated. The academic study of terrorism has been rapidly developing and new ideas and insights occur rapidly and constantly. I would argue that the pace of change in terrorism studies is generally greater than other subfields of political science. Moreover, the nature of the threat of terrorism evolves constantly and rapidly, which further complicates being able to develop a coherent and cohesive textbook. Nacos’ efforts in this regard are laudable—she does an excellent job of incorporating and summarizing new findings and new events. - Jeffrey Bosworth, Mansfield University
The book is well written and informative. I find it is written so the new student or second year students can easily understand its contents and the vocabulary being used. New vocabulary is part of the teaching process. - Dennis W. McLean, Keiser University
The students are generally very positive about the text. It is well written, well-paced and accessible, which is important for first year students. It is general enough to be used as a comprehensive introduction, but has enough depth to give the student’s some of the subtleties and complexities of the topic... The advantages are that the book is updated and timely and that it provides a very good focus on both hard and soft approaches, including communications theory and terrorist / counter terrorist messaging and the internet. - Julian Droogany, Macquarie University, Australia