The fight against ISIS in your neighbourhood
Social psychologists have pointed out that most terrorists have no inherent personality defect but are, in fact, ordinary people shaped by group dynamics in the name of a cause that is misconstrued as being noble and just.
Fear and overreaction from society can then beget greater extremism, fuelling what has been termed as “co-radicalisation”.
Social scientists are learning that radicalisation does not just depend on indoctrination by an extremist leader, but is also driven in part by the divisions among groups that extremists seek to create and exploit.
If non-Muslims are provoked to treat Muslims with fear and hostility, then Muslims who previously eschewed conflict may feel marginalised and be susceptible to more radical voices, which perpetuates a vicious cycle of suspicion and mistrust among the different groups.
Crucially, society plays a big part in whether radical views are nipped in the bud or further fanned.
Solutions to the menace of terrorism lie as much with the reaction and behaviour of society towards Muslims as with combating extremist views.
Maria Loh Mun Foong
(First published in the Straits Times/ANN)
