Terrorism Perspectives from the Behavioral and Social Sciences (2002) / Chapter Skim
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3. Responses to Terrorism in the United States
3. Responses to Terrorism in the United States
Pages 37-49
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From page 37... ...
Some targets of terrorist attacks are human beings themselves, for example, assassinations, the bombing of large human assemblies, and biological and chemical poisoning and contamination. Others do not attack humans at all but aim to disrupt some vital economic or institutional functioning, for example, disruption of financial institutions or computer networks.
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From page 38... ...
prevention at the source, that is, by seeking out ant} disrupting terrorist activities in the present case, in staging areas in the several countries that knowingly harbor terrorists and to some extent in countries that do not wish them there; (c) prevention at the end of the line, by erecting defenses at the locus of known or conceivable targets, such as dams, public buildings, mass assemblages of people, and so on; (~)
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From page 39... ...
Recall the high-profile, sometimes hysterical movement to protect against fallout in the wake of a nuclear attack in the 1950s and 1960s. Despite encouragement by both government and the media, only ~ in every 100,000 people actually built some sort of fallout shelter (New York Times, "Week in Review," Dec.
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From page 40... ...
~ The appearance of a mix of intense emotional reactions, including fear, anxiety, and terror, as well as rage, guilt, grief, and serious mental disturbances in a small proportion of the affected population; some research (Wolfenstein, 1957) indicates that many of the extreme reactions occur among individuals already suffering from mental disorders.
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From page 41... ...
~' The development of a notable social solidarity, including a pulling-together of the affected community to respond to the crisis; altruistic and heroic behavior; an increase in trust of other in(livicluals, groups, and authorities; an augmented spirit of cooperation and good will; and the spread of euphoric feelings as a kind of collective offset to the negative emotional responses. ~ The simultaneous appearance of scapegoating reactions, directed primarily at inclividuals believed to be responsible for permitting the (lisaster to occur and for failures in responding to the crisis.
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From page 42... ...
Finally, the mix of reactions will differ widely according to whether human casualties result from the attack and whether the attack is immediately recognizable or is perceived as having invisible or unknown dimensions. It is instructive to comment on the September 11 attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in this context.
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From page 43... ...
The press also played a role, scarcely deliberate, in magnifying the threat, bringing what were essentially a series of highly localized events to the attention of a vast population of viewers and readers. ~ ~ ~ ~ ~ e ~ N&RMA~4I 7ATiON ;AS inclicated, the natural history of recovery from disaster involves a diminution of emotional responses, the setting in of a certain denial of the possibility of recurrence, and a return to routine activities, events, rhythms, and conflicts.
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From page 44... ...
Subsequent attacks would also probably lead to even more tightening of homeland security, along with all the psychological and political consequences that would ensue. If, down the line, a dreadful scenario of multiple, repeated, and continuous terrorist attacks should unfoIcI, one would expect the emergence of, among other things, a certain routinization of disaster reactions, including an inuring and hardening of public outlooks and behavior reminiscent of what has been witnessed over time in places like Northern Ireland, Israel, and Lebanon.
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From page 45... ...
Such support does not last indefinitely, however, as the fate of President George Bush after the Gulf War demonstrates. Political leadership also pulls together in such times of crisis, particularly if the crisis involves an attack on the nation as a whole.
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From page 46... ...
One aspect of political solidarity and the diminution of partisanship during national crises of the sort now being experienced is that opposition parties and groups extend unusual trust of, and cooperation with, top national leaders. The engine TERRORISM: PERSPECTIVES FROM THE BEHAVIORAL AND SOCIAL SCIENCES
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From page 47... ...
We cannot unambiguously predict political movements, even though social scientists understand a good deal about the conditions under which movements develop. £~: ASPECTS OF RECO~VERY Some potential terrorist targets are economic in nature.
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From page 48... ...
In general, economic dislocations resulting from discrete terrorist activities should be expected to obey the laws of routinization however slowly in some cases as people in the affected parts of the economy gradually return to their normally preferred lines of activity and expenditures. Another economic effect that appears over time in the wake of national traumas is the process of capitalizing on public crisis and turning it in the direction of private gain.
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From page 49... ...
It is also possible that the economically relevant aspects of environmental protection will fall from salience as well, unless special efforts are maple to sustain them. Environmental efforts involve costs to the nation, and they could come to be seen as competitive with more urgent expenditures.
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