A Situational Model for Distinguishing Terrorist and Non-Terrorist Aerial Hijackings, 1948–2007

This article may be used for research, teaching, and private study purposes. Any substantial or systematic reproduction, redistribution, reselling, loan, sub-licensing, systematic supply, or distribution in any form to anyone is expressly forbidden. The publisher does not give any warranty express or implied or make any representation that the contents will be complete or accurate or up to date. The accuracy of any instructions, formulae, and drug doses should be independently verified with primary sources. The publisher shall not be liable for any loss, actions, claims, proceedings, demand, or costs or damages whatsoever or howsoever caused arising directly or indirectly in connection with or arising out of the use of this material. Despite the centrality of situational variables to crime theories, they remain uncommon in criminology. Based on the hypotheses drawn from the literature 10 on situational determinants of crime, we examine whether aerial hijackings perpetrated by terrorists are situationally distinct from other aerial hijackings. We define terrorist hijackings as those that include threatened or actual use of illegal force or violence to attain a political, economic, religious or social goal through fear, coercion, or intimidation. Other aerial hijackings include 15 those perpetrated for transportation or extortion purposes. Using a newly updated dataset, we examined 1,019 aerial hijackings that occurred around the world from 1948 to 2007, out of which we classified 122 as terrorism. Results provide strong support for the argument that situational factors measuring organizational resources distinguish terrorist from non-terrorist aerial 20 hijackings, and partial support for the argument that situational factors measuring publicity distinguish these events. Susan Fahey is an assistant professor of criminal justice at the Richard Stockton College of New Jersey. Her research areas include aerial hijacking, terrorism, political instability, and terrorism databases. Gary LaFree is a professor of criminology and criminal justice at the University of Maryland and director of the National Center for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism (START), based at the university. His research includes the development and analysis of the Global Terrorism Database, an open-source database with information on terrorist events around the world from 1970 through 2008. LaFree is a past president of the American Society of Criminology. Laura Dugan is an associate professor in the Department of Criminology and Criminal Justice at the University of Maryland, and a member of the National Center for the Study of Terrorism and Responses to Terrorism. Her research examines the …