key question

Question 1

what is the social key question?

Answer 1

• what makes people commit acts of terrorism against fellow human beings?

Question 2

what is terrorism?

Answer 2

• defined as ‘the use of threat of action to influence a government or intimidate the public for political or religious case’

Question 3

examples of terrorism

Answer 3

• attack on World Trade Centre in America on 11th September 2001 (9/11)
• Manchester concert attack in May 2017
• London Bridge attack in June 2017
• all have stirred up public opinion and made us all consider what motivates an ordinary person to become terrorist

Question 4

why is key question important today in society?

Answer 4

• it’s not new
  
  • has been used since beginnings of recorded history eg can be traced back to French Revolution 1789
  • however, it has evolved over last 200 years and now most common types of terrorism include bombings, hostage taking and hi-jacking
• recent ideas now hold that roots of terrorism lie not in the individual but in the wider circumstances in which terrorists live and act
• according to MI5, threat from terrorism has increased significantly from 1960s and s now at an all-time high for UK
• affects our public safety
• also affects our quality and enjoyment of life
• fighting terrorism is detrimental to the economics of country

Question 5

how can social identity theory explain why people commit acts of terrorism?

Answer 5

• terrorists may believe they are in in-group and categorise themselves as such at the expense of the anti-terrorists (out-group)
• by identifying with one group, they start to take on the identity of the group, which may involve dressing in particular way, using particular language and developing common beliefs
• this in-group favouritism (to own country/religion/cause) is important for group to uphold their self-esteem and may lead to discrimination against other groups in order to maintain this self-esteem (acts of terrorism)
• eg suicide bombers are martyrs (suffer for the cause)

Question 6

strength and weakness of using SIT to explain terrorism

Answer 6

• strength: it shows how people can begin identifying with their in group and see it as better as the out group to maintain self esteem (Tajfel et al 1970’s exp)
• weakness: Tajfel’s exp can’t be generalised outside of boys in lab setting, may not apply to the complex factors involved in terrorism

Question 7

how can realistic conflict theory be applied to terrorists?

Answer 7

• there’s competition between terrorists and anti-terrorists, which could be social or political, leading to discrimination

Question 8

strength and weakness of using RCT to explain terrorism

Answer 8

• strength: it showed how competition for resources can quickly create conflict between groups, despite no previous motivations for conflict, also shows how quick group norms can develop (sherif et al’s robber’s cave exp)
• weakness: sherif’s study used only young boys, meaning the findings may not be generalisable to other ages or social groups

Question 9

how can agency theory (Milgram) be applied to terrorists?

Answer 9

• terrorists may be following a leader in position of authority who may make them obey his/her commands to carry out acts of terror
• terrorists obey the leaders’ authority figures due to being in the agentic state (as seen when milgram’s ppts were more likely to carry out electric shocks when they perceived someone else to be responsible)

Question 10

strength and weakness of using agency theory to explain terrorism

Answer 10

• strength: explains that people obey authority figures and can do immoral acts against others, suggesting that terrorists go into an agentic state where they don’t necessarily act out of free will but place the responsibility on the authority figure (milgram’s 1963 study where 65% ppts would potentially administer fatal shocks on another human being if told to be in authority)
• weakness: Milgram’s study lacked eco val therefore results may not be generalisable to real life

Question 11

how can SIT be applied to reduce terrorism?

Answer 11

• if we help groups see each other as all members of a wider community, this will reduce conflict by reducing out-group bias and discrimination
• furthermore, by not separating groups (deutsch and Collins 1951 interracial housing project) we are able to form bonds and reduce out group bias
• this would reduce terrorism as terrorists would perceive those with differing belief systems less negatively

Question 12

how can RCT be applied to reduce terrorism?

Answer 12

• introducing community-based subordinate goals
• involving members from multiple social groups would help to reduce terrorism as this would reduce perceived competition between groups, eg starting a community garden with members from various religious and political groups
• subordinate goals are seen to reduce conflict in sherif ET al’s robber’s cave study and aronson et al 1978’s use of the ‘jigsaw technique’

Question 13

how can agency theory be applied to reduce terrorism?

Answer 13

• having an awareness of how we go into agentic stats when we obey authority figures helps us to understand situations where this may happen
• understanding this process can help us make better choices

Question 14

how can SIT, RCT and agentic theory be used to explain 9/11?

Answer 14

• SIT: perceived in group (islamic extremists), out group (relatively secular US society) meant the in group viewed US society negatively, leading to discrimination
• RCT: competition for resources between islamic extremists and average US citizens as both want to run society differently, creating conflict
• agency theory: a leader (Osama Bin Laden) caused the terrorists to enter the agentic state, making them obedient to committing acts of terrorism