2022-2023 Academic Catalog

May 09, 2024

2022-2023 Academic Catalog [ARCHIVED CATALOG]

PSCI 292 - TERRORISM AND POLITICAL VIOLENCE

This capstone seminar will provide participants with an in-depth exploration of one of the most significant, controversial, and complex topics of the 21st century: terrorism and political violence. As befits the subject matter, our exploration will be wide-ranging in both scope and form. We begin the course with a historically informed examination of terrorism as a concept, informed by the ongoing difficulty of the international community to reach a consensus on what, precisely, constitutes terrorism. We will then undertake an extensive comparative inventory of some of the major types of terrorism, as well as some of the more readily identifiable practitioners. We will also engage in the critical appraisal of terrorism as a form of political behavior-in the process investigating variables such as motivation and cognition, organizational structure, tactical innovation, gender, race, and communication strategies. In concluding the seminar, we will consider counterterrorism in broad relief, with an eye to the effectiveness of various counter-terrorism strategies and their likely impact on the projected future of terrorism.

IR

Prerequisites: PSCI 069

Anticipated Terms Offered: BI-ANNUALLY - EVERY OTHER YEAR