Russia’s domestic terrorism threat is serious, sophisticated and complex
The April 3 bombing on the St Petersburg metro was the highest-profile terror attack on Russian soil since a suicide bombing at Moscow’s Domodedovo…
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Quick reads exploring the world of social and behavioural science and security threats
Grassroots counter messaging in the UK
How can both top-down and bottom-up approaches to counter messaging learn from each other? CREST researcher Ben Lee presents an insight into his research…
Connecting Culture to Deception Detection
Irina Tache is a CREST Researcher at Lancaster University whose PhD is considering the extent to which techniques for detecting deception are effective across…
What do Islamic extremists mean?
Jihad is a term that we hear often, in martyrdom videos, Islamic State magazines and on the front pages of Western newspapers. But ‘jihad’…
Are converts to Islam more likely to become extremists?
CREST researchers Matthew Francis and Kim Knott write about the process of conversion in Islam and challenge the idea that converts are likely to…
How does the family pass on religion?
CREST researchers Kim Knott and Benjamin Lee look at how families transmit and reinforce religious and political ideologies. We get religion from our parents,…
Transmitting Terrorism: A Family Affair?
Simon Copeland investigates the transmission of extremist ideology within family and peer networks. Nearly 20 years after his father was convicted of helping plan…
Just another face in the crowd – what makes spotting unfamiliar faces difficult?
What can influence our ability to spot faces? Nick Donnelly, Anne Hillstrom and Natalie Mestry discuss their research on facial recognition ability. The ability…
Phishing scams are becoming ever more sophisticated – and firms are struggling to keep up
Companies are bombarded with phishing scams every day. In a recent survey of more than 500 cyber security professionals across the world, 76% reported…
How beliefs may come and go: a brief overview of a ‘cult career’
What makes someone join a minority religious group? Why might they then decide to leave? Amanda van Eck Duymaer van Twist discusses her research…
From ideological material to targeting choice in leaderless jihadist
Sarah Marsden explores the relationship between ideological material and leaderless jihadist targeting. How do leaderless jihadists decide who to attack? Generally, individuals who carry…
‘Reverse waves’: how radical ideas spread and take hold
Aristotle Kallis looks at how waves of radical ideas spread through whole societies, drawing on the ‘virus’ of fascism in 1930s Europe. ‘Waves’ of…