by Steven R. Corman

NSI has just released a new edited volume (PDF here) that should be of interest to COMOPS Journal readers.  Entitled Countering Violent Extremism: Scientific Methods and Strategies, it contains the latest thinking on the subject, including a chapter on narrative by yours truly.  The contents are listed below.

Foreword (Brig. Gen. John N.T. “Jack” Shanahan)
Preface (Diane DiEuiliis)
Executive Summary (Laurie Fenstermacher)

Section 1: Current Insights into Violent Extremism

• Not All Radicals are the Same: Implications for Counter-Radicalization Strategy (Tom Rieger)
• Countering Extremist Violence (Marc Sageman)
• Understanding the Role of Narrative in Extremist Strategic Communication (Steven R. Corman)
• Tracking the Spread of Violent Extremism (Dipak Gupta)
• Violent Extremism in Algeria: A Quest for Identity from Colonization to Globalization (Latefa Belarouci)

Section 2: Prevention of Violent Extremism

• Forecasting Terrorism, Predicting its Nature, and Driving Innovative Responses: “At-Risk Group Identity” as a Pivotal Concept for Understanding Political Violence (William D. Casebeer)
• A Strategic Plan to Defeat Radical Islam (Tawfik Hamid)
• Prevention of Violent Extremism: “What Are The People Saying?” (Alexis Everington)
• Countering Violent Extremism: Shifting the Emphasis towards the Development Paradigm (Ziad Alahdad)
• Partnering with Muslim Communities to Counter Radicalization (Hedieh Mirahmadi & Mehreen Farooq)
• The Role of Non-Violent Islamists in Radicalization and Counter-Radicalization: The European Debate (Lorenzo Vidino)

Section 3: Delegitimizing/Minimizing Popular Support for Violent Extremism

• The Mechanics of De-Legitimization (Cheryl Benard)
• Exploiting Al-Qa’ida’s Vulnerabilities for Delegitimization (Eric Larson)
• Arab Satellite Television and Popular Culture (Evelyn A. Early)
• The Role and Impact of Music in Promoting (and Countering) Violent Extremism (Anthony Lemieux & Robert Nill)

Section 4: Pursue and Protect/Risk Management/Deradicalization

• Using Citizen Messengers to Counteract Radicalism (Qamar-ul Huda)
• Evaluating the Effectiveness of De-Radicalization Programs: Towards A Scientific Approach to Terrorism Risk Reduction (John Horgan & Kurt Braddock)
• Battling the “University of Jihad:” An Evidence Based Ideological Program to Counter Militant Jihadi Groups Active on the Internet (Anne Speckhard)
• Mediation and Civil Wars Involving Terrorism (Karl DeRouen & Paulina Pospieszna)
• Deterrence, Influence, and Violent Extremist Organizations (Paul Davis)
• Coercing Violent Non-State Actors (Troy Thomas)