In contrast to a consensus among scholars that terrorists are relatively normal in terms of mental health, and thus, studying mental health is not a useful line of investigation, the current study found a large portion of a sample of former violent U.S. White supremacists report mental health problems before and/or during their involvement.
Individuals with mental health problems may be attracted to the White supremacist movement because of the ideological similarities to certain types of mental health symptoms such as paranoia, elevated levels of anger, and a sense of persecution. Additionally, results suggest that violent White supremacist groups do not actively filter prospective or current members for mental health problems. Findings provide evidence for the ongoing need to examine mental health factors among a variety of terrorist organizations and suggest that the emerging consensus may be an example of overgeneralization. (Publisher Abstract)
Downloads
Similar Publications
- Risk-Based Services, Reoffending, and Rethinking Service Approaches for Justice-Involved Youth
- SCA Follow-Up Study: A Longitudinal Study of 2009 Second Chance Act Adult Demonstration Program Participant
- A Reflective Spectroscopy and Mineralogical Investigation of Cosmetic Blush (Wet‘N’Wild) Potentially for Forensic Investigations Related to Interpersonal Violence—An Experimental Feasibility Study