Keywords

Terrorism, Domestic Extremism, Political Violence, Red Brigades, Italy, Interviews, Multi-Method Research

Abstract

This dissertation investigates the pathways leading to violent extremism, participation in violence, and judicial responses to terrorism. By comparing individuals who joined extremist groups with those who shared similar beliefs and backgrounds but did not engage in violence, the study identifies key differentiating factors. Interviews with former members of the Red Brigades and other major leftist extremist organizations active in 1970s Italy, as well as potential recruits, coupled with testimonies from sensitive archival documents, reveal that exposure to critical moments can trigger a reconsideration of normative values. When the perception of injustice is high and the fear of violence is low, this reconsideration can lead to extremism.

The research further proposes that militants' participation in violence is influenced by extra-group factors, such as isolation from family, and intra-group factors, such as violence committed by extremist organizations. Reviewing over 50,000 sensitive documents from various Italian State Archives enabled the creation of an original dataset and a Large-N analysis. The results indicate that density of social networks deter initial engagement in criminal activities and that there is a linear correlation between militants’ violence engagement and the violence inflicted by terrorist organizations across Italy, regardless of ideological stance.

Finally, judicial responses to terrorism are examined to understand how judges' evaluations of group violence and individual crimes influence sentences. Interviews with jurists and statistical analysis of original data support these findings. Jurists indirectly acknowledged that the period’s conditions affected their judicial behavior, and negative binomial models show that increased attacks and ambush injuries lead to substantially longer sentences for members of the attacking group.

The study highlights the need to understand violent extremism, noting that grievances in democratic countries can lead to violence. This is evident in the rise of right-wing extremism in North America and Europe, which can quickly escalate into violent actions.

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Completion Date

2024

Semester

Summer

Committee Chair

Dolan, Thomas

Degree

Doctor of Philosophy (Ph.D.)

College

College of Sciences

Department

School of Politics, Security, and International Affairs (SPSIA)

Degree Program

Security Studies

Format

application/pdf

Identifier

DP0028505

URL

https://purls.library.ucf.edu/go/DP0028505

Language

English

Release Date

8-15-2029

Length of Campus-only Access

5 years

Access Status

Doctoral Dissertation (Campus-only Access)

Campus Location

Orlando (Main) Campus

Accessibility Status

Meets minimum standards for ETDs/HUTs

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Restricted to the UCF community until 8-15-2029; it will then be open access.

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