American She-Wolves: Exploring the Activities and Media Representation of Lone Actor Female Terrorists

• In Event: Understanding Lone Wolf Terrorists

Abstract

Males dominate the Lone Wolf terrorism-related discourse in the United States, as they traditionally are the most salient risk. But what do we know about the female Lone Wolf terrorist? And further, when female Lone Wolf terrorists are covered in the media, how are they discussed? Media has an enormous impact on how Lone Wolf terrorism is constructed, and that social construction has the ability to influence both individual behavior and social policy.
Employing a unique dataset of American Lone Wolf terror incidents and utilizing ethnographic content analysis of media sources, this study employs a two-fold approach. First, it outlines and analyzes the descriptive characteristics of female Lone Wolf terrorists and their activities in the United States. Additionally, we examine what effect, if any, the social construction of female Lone Wolf terrorists in the media implies for the (mis)understanding of female Lone Wolf terrorists and their activities in the United States.

Author

• Estee Marchi, Rutgers University - Newark