Psychoanalytic social theorists who work in the relational tradition have analyzed the psychodynamics of enemy systems and identified persistent themes in the operation of these systems. Although enemy systems often involve enmity between ethnic, national or cultural groups, the psychodynamic symptoms of such systems are observable when social groups cast familiar outgroups as enemies. In conte...

This article presents a framework for using probabilistic terrorism risk modeling in regulatory analysis. We demonstrate the framework with an example application involving a regulation under consideration, the Western Hemisphere Travel Initiative for the Land Environment, (WHTI-L). First, we estimate annualized loss from terrorist attacks with the Risk Management Solutions (RMS) Probabilistic ...

There is increased awareness that children are commonly exposed to traumatic events with potential to cause psychological sequelae. Worldwide, children account for many of the victims of wars or natural disasters. Even in the more economically developed countries, it can be estimated that about a quarter will have encountered some severe trauma by the time they are 18 year old (Stevenson, 1999;...

The literature makes clear that foreign policy affects voting, but it does not lead to clear expectations as to how a war will affect voting. Will views about the advisability of the war predominate? Or will the indirect effect through the incumbent’s image be more important? Will a war crowd out other potential issues, particularly domestic ones? This paper addresses these questions through a ...

In this paper, I present additional information for policy-makers and researchers to consider in response to the view proposed by Potts et al that “the pill is mightier than the sword.” I identify states with both high rates of terrorism and a youth bulge and discuss correlates of both these societal characteristics. The research examined supports the view that factors other than access to fami...

Web Publication: 06 February 2004 There should be no doubt by now that the challenge of terrorism has left an indelible mark on the world as we know it. From the 11 September 2001 assaults on the New York City World Trade Center and the US Pentagon to the daily carnage in Iraq, as the traditional Turkish expression goes, we are truly "living the history". No group is as intimately connected to ...

To mitigate the threat that terrorists smuggle weapons of mass destruction (WMD) into the US through maritime containers, the US Bureau of Customs and Border Protection (CBP) inspects containers upon entry to domestic ports. Inspection-driven congestion is costly, and CBP provides incentives to firms to improve security upstream in the supply chain, thereby reducing the inspection burden at US ...

Violent acts such as a school shooting, domestic violence, suicides, gang fights, sexual assault, homicides, violence seen in the media (real or fantasy), and acts of terrorism have sudden, unpredictable and dramatic effects on children and their families. In addition, the sudden death of a family member, friend, or pet can devastate a child. Acts of violence have an inordinate negative impact ...