Terrorism: A Critical Introduction

Introduction.- PART I: THE STUDY OF POLITICAL TERRORISM.- The Orthodox Study of Terrorism.- Critical Approaches to Terrorism Studies.- The Cultural Construction of Terrorism.- Bringing Gender into the Study of Terrorism.- PART II: KEY ISSUES.- Conceptualizing Terrorism.- Reconsidering the Terrorism Threat.- Types of Terrorism.- Understanding State Terrorism.- The Causes of Non-State Terrorism.- Responding to Non-State Terrorism.- Assessing the War on Terror.

Richard Jackson, Lee Jarvis, Jeroen Gunning and Marie Breen-Smyth

'A superb critical introduction to both the field of terrorism research and to our understanding of the phenomena associated with terrorism. Wide ranging, well written and pitched to the student audience, it is easily the best introduction to the subject.' -Michael Stohl, University of California, USA'An admirably organised and comprehensive volume which provides a critical approach with which all serious students of terrorism must engage - whether they agree with it or not. This research-based text is an important addition to teaching materials on a vital area of public policy.' - Ken Booth, Aberystwyth University, UK'Refreshing and wide-ranging, this is a long-overdue and valuable addition to the literature.' - Ruth Blakeley, University of Kent, UK'A sustained breeze of fresh air focused on a subject-or obsession-that desperately needs it.' - John Mueller, Ohio State University, USA'Here at last is the much-needed textbook that critically dissects terrorism's myths and realities from a critical perspective. Intellectually sophisticated, it is based on the most up-to-date tools of current scholarship.' - Joseba Zulaika, University of Nevada, USA '[A]n innovative book that is designed to change how we teach and research terrorism... [it] brings a fresh and well-developed alternative to the traditional literature... A great strength of the book is the way in which it challenges academics writing in this field to be reflective about their analytical categories and normative commitments.' - Tim Dunne, International Affairs'[T]he authors have very successfully achieved their goal of broadening and deepening the field of terrorism studies, providing an important resource and stimulus for further critical engagement with the theoretical and empirical issues related to terrorism.' - Kathryn Fisher, Millennium'Over the last decade, a number of very good books on the study of terrorism have come to the fore. However, thecurrent entry by Jackson et al. is at the very top of