1. What prevention, mitigation, enforcement measures are taken to avoid terrorism?
It is worth recognizing that terrorism remains a significant threat to the global peace and security, an attribute that has led various governments to devise better methods of combating the issue. Apparently, terrorist networks around the world have killed thousands of innocent lives from different faiths and nations, through their extreme attacks on civilians. However, although terrorist groups in various countries are experiencing continued pressure from the military, a move that has significantly shrunk its size, the group is still looking for ways to raise money and recruit new members that conduct attacks in different parts of the world (Black, 2015). It is for this reason that the global world is fighting to manage the threat of terrorism to avoid more damage to various communities around the world.
Nevertheless, in the fight against terrorists, it is worth appreciating that countries should work together so as to fight effectively in eradicating the menace as no country can manage on its own. For practical measures drawn against the group, there is the need for multilateral cooperation, capacity building and joint efforts to fight the group. Different countries with a mission to combat terrorism around the world have resolved to form alliances so as to work together in fighting the group. Governments are making communities aware of their respective roles in managing security within their localities and alerting the law enforcers of possible terrorists within their regions (Paraskevas & Arendell, 2007).
However, to counter some of the limitations experienced in different communities that allow terrorist to work freely, governments are enforcing the civilian law to help discourage the behavior, encourage good governance in the countries and offering efficient public services as required. Governments are further conducting counter-terrorism training to different stakeholders across the globe such as the police, prosecutors among other relevant parties. A recent strategy that has gained popularity in the fight against terrorism using the camera surveillance as it has proved to be the most efficient approach used in different organizations.
2. How are these efforts similar to and different from the methods used to prevent or mitigate routine criminal activity?
Similarities
There are many similarities between the way that both terrorism and illegal activities controlled in a country due to their harmful impact on global security and peace. Some of the important measures used as aforementioned in the control of both include the use of target laws, criminal procedures based on a country regulation. In worse cases, people found to have committed both terror and criminal activities in foreign nations are subjected to either international prosecution or deportation in the case of minor criminal activities. Another approach often considered useful for the two incidents is the efficient use of community policing to identify different people with ill motives. Both victims are subjected to comprehensive interrogation and detention and even imprisonment to help eradicate the vice from societies.
Differences
While routine criminal activities are committed within localized area, the actors are subjected to local laws which are mainly enforced by police. However, terrorism being a global disaster, several mitigation efforts to counter the vice are made by both military and local police.
3. What are the Benefits and Limitations of Prevention versus Enforcement?
Benefits
Both prevention and enforcement measures are vital in the management of criminal and terrorist activities in the current global setting. With prevention, different measures are put in place to help eradicate the habit from the society as the approach plays a significant role in encouraging moral behaviors in organizations, a virtue that will make people not to join different terrorist groups or involve themselves in criminal activities (Wallace & Fullilove, 2014). The prevention campaign helps communities to understand the threats of terrorism and criminal activities and different impacts they have on society.
Enforcement, on the other hand, plays a vital role as through the concept, effective laws are enacted to help control the behavior of people in a given area. Enforcement makes immoral activities such as terrorism and crime to be illegal, an aspect that makes people behave in a moral and just way. The concept helps in eliminating any form of confusion and disorder among community members that may contribute to criminal activities (Paraskevas & Arendell, 2007).
Limitation
One of the limitations experienced in both prevention and enforcement is inadequate funds to use in facilitating the different activities involved. Moreover, law enforcement in most countries takes a long period before accomplishment, a feature that may contribute to more harm to the community. Another limitation is the fact that although there are various laws put in place to govern good conduct, people still involve themselves in criminal activities without any action taken on them. This, therefore, means that there are no active enforcement agents set in place to manage the behavior.
4. How is the economy affected by criminal activities and terrorism?
Terrorism and criminal activities have adverse effects on economic growth leading to depression and possible recessions. Moreover, the cost incurred in managing terrorism is very high for any free economy and accumulation of the different impact felt by killing people, reduces the consumption rate although by a negligible amount. Terrorism and criminal activities create a fear of possible violence, a virtue that discourages investments in such an economy as it considered to be of high risks premium. The concept deprives an economy of potential investments as a higher return to offset the condition is required which is not achievable. Moreover, the fear of violence resulting from terror threat makes different organizations spend more on security measures leaving fewer amounts of cash allocated for other productive investment. It is, therefore, evident that terrorism and criminal activities through creating fear for violence significantly reduces production capacity realized in an economy (Polat & Uslu, 2013).
The impact of terrorism on an economy is more felt in a small country with the small economy, for example, Colombia faced terrorism attacks for almost twenty years, an aspect that fled away foreign capital as investors avoid such areas. Another example of an economy that has experienced severe adverse impact due to terrorism is Israel, a condition that has deprived the economy about 4% of its GDP (Shapiro, 2003). Some of the key results impacted by terror attacks include a sudden fall in the foreign investments experienced in the country, the decline in tourism in the country and finally, increase in the security costs to enhance peace in the region. Therefore, we can recognize the fact that terror attacks have a significant impact on undermining the confidence level of investors, an aspect that significantly reduces the number of new projects in such areas. Apparently, if Israel were free of terrorism, the state could have experienced an 18% higher investment rate than it is today.
Nonetheless, a crime like any economic threat has an adverse impact on the economic growth of a place as they are costly. The criminal activities like murder, rape, and robbery among others impose significant economic costs on the victims that survive due to the loss they often encounter. This is categorized into the loss of earning, physical or emotional loss due to the loss of the loved ones as a result. Apparently, criminal activities have undesired effects on communities as they lead to low property valuation, high insurance premiums, result in reduced investment in the high crime areas, a condition that leads to the poor development of the economy. Furthermore, criminal activities lead to additional costs to the taxpayers as they have to cater for the different security operations put in place by the government. It is worth concluding that both terrorism and criminal activities set back the economic growth as they discourage investments, increases the costs incurred in installing different security measures, reduce tourism activities in an area among other effects. Therefore, effective measures to combat the menace of terrorism and criminal activities are a necessity for any free economy that wishes to prosper.
5. How does psychology play a role in both criminal and terrorism activity?
Psychologists play an essential role in counter-terrorism, indicating the different practices, tactics, and approaches used in the fight against the group. The alarming increase in terrorism can be effectively managed by psychologists as they help in the assessment of the various terror crimes, suggesting effective measures to counter the threat and vital in the investigation of the same. Therefore, it is evident that both criminal and terrorist activities in a country can are effectively controlled with the use of the concept. The psychologists work with an objective of understanding the truth behind the terror attacks as they try to comprehend why someone has to involve himself in terrorism, a concept often referred to as brainwashing. Such information is critical in supporting the various efforts intended to counter terrorism or criminal activities in a country (Porter et al., 2016).
Scholars have however critiqued Israel’s effort to combat terrorism through the torture of the victims as the technique does not result in the release of much information whatsoever Forensic (COUNTER TERRORISM, 2016). However, the human treatment, a method that is embraced by psychologists has proved worth as it makes the victims offer more information instead. Some of the intimidation tactics used by the by the psychologists include a threat to kill their family members other than the previous torturous tactics. Some of the practical strategies used by psychologists in controlling criminal and terror activities include;
• Challenge of the criminal or terrorist believes
• Because the intention of terrorists is to get a media coverage of their respective activities, the psychologists consider limiting the coverage of the terror activities
• The analysts consider avoiding any form of negotiation with terrorists except in rare cases such as in cases of plane crashes
• Psychologist help in the effective training of the expert negotiators who comprehensively understand the psyche to terrorist to limit any harm caused to civilians whatsoever.
• The last role performed by the psychologists in both criminal and terrorism control is counseling to the affected individuals as a remedy to help heal trauma effects resulting from such incidents.
It is important therefore to appreciate the fact that both criminal and terrorist activities can be effectively controlled with the use psychological strategies mentioned above.
Reference
Black, I. S. (2015). 39: Workplace Violence. Prevention, Mitigation, Response, and Recovery. Security Supervision and Management, 527-533.
COUNTER TERRORISM: Misconceptions psychologists & propaganda war forensic psychology social sciences psychology. (1919). Retrieved March 14, 2016, from http://www.zeepedia.com/read.php%3Fcounter_terrorism_misconceptions_psychologists_propaganda_war_forensic_psychology%26b%3D87%26c%3D44
Paraskevas, A., & Arendell, B. (2007). A strategic framework for terrorism prevention and mitigation in tourism destinations. Tourism Management, 28(6), 1560–1573.
Polat, Ö., & Uslu, E. E. (2013). The Impact of Terrorism on Economy in Turkey. Journal of Economic & Social Research, 15(1), 73-96.
Porter, S., Rose, K., & Dilley, T. (2016). Enhanced interrogations: The expanding roles of psychology in police investigations in Canada. Canadian Psychology/Psychologie canadienne, 57(1), 35–43
Shapiro, R. (2003, February 28). Would terrorism damage the U.S. Economy?. Retrieved March 14, 2016, from http://www.slate.com/articles/business/the_dismal_science/2003/02/alqaida_and_the_gdp.html
Wallace, R., & Fullilove, R. E. (2014). State policy and the political economy of criminal enterprise: Mass incarceration and persistent organized hyperviolence in the USA. Structural Change and Economic Dynamics, 31, 17–31.
