Failed terrorist campaigns trigger violence escalation that further alienates supporters

Evidence

Terrorists face the difficult task of calibrating the level of their violence so as not to alienate their sympathizers. This is not easy to do when terrorist activities raise moral qualms in partisans and can make their lives more miserable. The natural tendency in the face of failed attempts is to escalate the level of violence, which only makes it more socially alienating. However, a clever campaign in moral disengagement can get supporters to accept extreme terrorist acts as morally justified (Sarma, 2010). — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 2259 (#expands, via linked claim)

On the other hand, psychological factors may be at the root of the escalation of terrorism. Perhaps under pressure from the government, members of terrorist organizations grow desperate and lose control. What kinds of pressures and perceptions increase tendencies toward counterproductive violence? Innovation in terrorist strategies is another area of research to which psychology could contribute. Why, for example, did terrorist organizations shift to bargaining tactics after 1968? The answer to the question of why terrorism ends may also lie in the psychology of the terrorists rather than in the countervailing power of the government. Why some terrorists “repent” while others persist to their deaths is an important question. — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 4182 (#complicates, via linked claim)

Categorization

• XREF: connects to: Failed militant campaigns tend toward escalation that alienates sympathizers — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement: How People Do Harm…, 2259; Failed assassination attempts trigger disproportionate factional political violence — Antonio Gramsci, Selections from the Prison Notebooks, 2249; Government pressure may push terrorist groups toward escalation and counterproductive violence — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 4182 (+1 more)

Broader Connections

• Failed militant campaigns tend toward escalation that alienates sympathizers #expands (0.97) — Albert Bandura, Moral Disengagement, 2259
• Government pressure may push terrorist groups toward escalation and counterproductive violence #complicates (0.74) — John T. Jost and Jim Sidanius, Political Psychology, 4182