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European Lone Actor Terrorists Versus "Common" Homicide Offenders: An Empirical Analysis
Marieke Liem1, Jelle van Buuren1, Jeanine de Roy van Zuijdewijn1
1Leiden University, The Hague, The Netherlands.
Homicide Studies
|November 17, 2018
Summary
European lone actor terrorists, ideologically motivated, share traits with homicide offenders but differ in substance use, weapon choice, and targets. Understanding these differences is key.
Area of Science:
- Criminology
- Terrorism Studies
- Social Psychology
Background:
- Lone actor violence is often ideologically motivated and employs terrorist tactics.
- Existing research predominantly focuses on U.S. lone actors.
- A significant gap exists in understanding lone actor violence within the European context and its relation to general homicide.
Purpose of the Study:
- To examine and compare the characteristics of European lone actors with European "common" homicide offenders.
- To address the empirical vacuum and conceptual gap in the study of lone actor violence in Europe.
- To explore how lone actor violence can be understood as a variation of homicidal behavior.
Main Methods:
- Comparative analysis of European lone actor terrorists and European "common" homicide offenders.
- Examination of demographic, behavioral, and motivational characteristics.
- Statistical comparison of key variables including substance use, weapon use, and target selection.
Main Results:
- Lone actor terrorists in Europe form a heterogeneous group.
- They share similarities with common homicide offenders.
- Key differences were observed in substance use, weapon use, and target selection.
Conclusions:
- Lone actor terrorists are not a monolithic group and share characteristics with general homicide offenders.
- Differences in substance use, weapon choice, and target indicate distinct patterns potentially linked to instrumental versus expressive aims.
- Further research is needed to refine the understanding of lone actor violence as a distinct form of criminal behavior.
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