PATHWAYS BETWEEN IDENTITY AND VIOLENCE: A SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY APPROACH

Abstract

This thesis debunks the notion that an individual becomes a terrorist because they are mentally unstable and drawn to terrorist and extremist groups because of their ideologies and fills a gap in the social psychological understanding of the dynamics between a personal and group identity. The thesis investigates the process of radicalization through a lens of identity changes as explained by three social psychological theories: uncertainty identity theory (UIT), social identity theory (SIT), and identity fusion theory (IFT). Each of the three theories is evaluated through a meta-analysis, and the findings from each theory are then compared to each other. Social psychological theories recognize that an individual’s personal identity changes under the influence of the social identity of the group to which the individual belongs. UIT, SIT, and IFT explain radicalization with different motivational backgrounds: reducing uncertainty, boosting self-esteem, and sharing experiences and characteristics, but they do agree that social or group identity radicalizes personal identity. The theories also postulate that threat perception plays an important role in pathway to violence, as it enhances radicalization. The outcome of this meta-analysis indicates that radicalization is in great part a product of social conditioning by the group to which an individual belongs.