Entry tags:
correspondent inference theory, or why terrorists' objectives aren't met
http://www.wired.com/politics/security/commentary/securitymatters/2007/07/securitymatters_0712
This is one of the more interesting articles I've read recently. Essentially the argument is that people often attribute certain motives to actions that they observe that are conservative (my term) in nature, e.g., "he's attacking me because he wants to kill me". So insofar as terrorists' objectives are in fact political rather than military, they tend not to be met because (a) political objectives require at least some cooperation, and (b) the people who are affected by terrorist attacks respond to the attacks _as_ attacks, and not as a means to get them to embrace the desired political changes.
I've not expressed this especially well since I'm in a hurry and underslept. Go read the article.
This is one of the more interesting articles I've read recently. Essentially the argument is that people often attribute certain motives to actions that they observe that are conservative (my term) in nature, e.g., "he's attacking me because he wants to kill me". So insofar as terrorists' objectives are in fact political rather than military, they tend not to be met because (a) political objectives require at least some cooperation, and (b) the people who are affected by terrorist attacks respond to the attacks _as_ attacks, and not as a means to get them to embrace the desired political changes.
I've not expressed this especially well since I'm in a hurry and underslept. Go read the article.