Understanding Terrorists' Actions and Agency

• In Event: 4322 - Section on Political Sociology Refereed Roundtable Session
  In Refereed Roundtable 60min: Table 09. Conservatives and Right-Wing Politics

Abstract

In this paper, I explore the theoretical conceptualizations of political violence as a social action in the field of terrorism studies. I address the limitations of the two prevalent theories of social action in terrorism literature: Parsonian normative theory and rational choice theory. Drawing from sociologically nuanced explanations of human agency and social action based on the works of Pierre Bourdieu, Loic Wacquant, Michel Foucault, and Saba Mahmood, I suggest taking into account the relevance of power, embodiment, and ethical formations in understanding terrorists’ agency and actions.

Author

• Feyza Akova