re 2, 2018). According to Martha Crenshaw—a professor of political science at Stanford University—terrorism is a logical choice and terrorist groups make calculated decisions prior to, and even while, engaging in terrorist acts (Roser et al., 2018). James Forest—a professor at the University of Massachusetts Lowell—also supports the notion that individual choice is a key part of a terrorist’s development. An arguable contributor to this choice is the social interaction with individuals who have radical ideas as this often provides the first introduction to terrorism (Daddio, Lecture 2, 2018). Osama bin Laden is a prime example of this, as his original introduction to the Muslim Brotherhood was the result of his interaction with his school teachers. Soon, Osama bin Laden began to emulate the behavior of his teachers, justifying the decision and rationale to engage in terrorism (Daddio, Lecture 2, 2018). Beyond the effects of the individual’s choice, psychological and sociological theories may offer comprehension for the reasons one becomes motivated to engage in terrorism.

Psychological Theories

Psychological approaches to understanding what causes an individual to assume a terrorist mindset tends to focus on the individual factors that draw an individual into a terrorist organization. Often these factors include mental illness, traumatic experiences, and overall personality characteristics of the individual, including their psychology of self. Usually when an individual joins a terrorist organization it is the result of multiple factors and when specifically, the result of a psychological cause, progression to the organization is gradual (Davis and Cragin, 2009). There are four general theories of terrorism which are considered to be psychological in nature. They are the negative identity theory, the narcissistic rage theory, the paranoia theory, and the absolutist thinking theory (Victoroff, 2005). Each theory engages some aspect of the psychology of self as the basis for understanding terrorist behavior and argues this understanding has massive implications for dealing with terrorists and identifying those individuals at risk of radicalization (Hudson, 1999).

Negative Identity Theory

Negative identity theory is a derivation of Erik Erikson’s—a German-American developmental psychologist—theory of identity formation which details that the development of self is formed through social interactions. According to Erikson’s theory, when an adolescent develops a sense of identity, they in turn develop fidelity, which is the ability to form genuine relationships with others (Cherry, 2018). Failure to develop this fidelity can lead to developmental conflicts and inhibit an adolescent’s ability to commit to an