A Descriptive Analysis of Lone-Actor and Mass Casualty Offender Behavior

• In Event: Lone-Actor Terrorism & Mass Casualty Offenders

Abstract

This paper provides a descriptive analysis of the socio-demographic, network characteristics and antecedent behaviors of lone-actor terrorists, and mass casualty perpetrators leading up to their planning or conducting of a violent event. The questions explored in this sub-project are the following: What, if any, demographic characteristics define each offender type and the sample as a whole? What ideologies are associated with lone-actor and solo-terrorist events? To what extent are close friends and family or wider networks of coconspirators typically aware of the offender’s intent to engage in violent offenses? To what extent are co-conspirators typically involved in the planning stages of the offender’s intended violent activities? How socially isolated do these offenders tend to be? Are there key life history events that may be relevant in understanding the development of these offenders?

Authors

• James Silver, University of Massachusetts, Lowell

• John Horgan, University of Massachusetts, Lowell