What factors may induce support for terrorism?

The document analyzes drivers of support for terrorism, finding that justifications for domestic and political violence, younger age, lower education, and a lack of religious belief or openness to other religions are positively associated with justifying terrorism. It notes that while some factors vary by region, a moderate commitment to democracy and a moderate perceived importance of God are consistent global indicators of support for terrorism.

• There is a strong positive relationship between the justification of violence and support for terrorism. Specifically, hostile sexist attitudes and the justification of domestic violence are strongly associated with support for violent extremism, as are justifications for political violence or violence towards children.
• Demographic data indicates that younger individuals and those with only primary or secondary education are more likely to justify terrorism than older individuals or those with higher education (such as Bachelor's or Master's degrees).
• The relationship between income and support for terrorism is curvilinear, with individuals in the middle of the income scale being the most likely to support terrorism, rather than the poorest.
• Religiosity itself is not significantly related to support for terrorism; however, individuals who identify as atheists or not religious are more likely to support terrorism than religious individuals. Among the religious, those who view God as only 'somewhat important' are most likely to justify terrorism.
• Factors related to government and social cohesion show that national pride and tolerance toward other races are negatively related to support for terrorism. Conversely, the study found that individuals with confidence in government were more prone to justifying terrorism, a result that contradicted expectations.
• While many factors vary by region—such as the significance of age and education in the Americas, Asia, and Oceania, or the role of religion in Europe—two factors remained consistent globally: individuals who feel God is moderately important and those with a moderate commitment to democracy are more likely to support terrorism.
• The study found no clear relationship between feelings of alienation from society and support for terrorism, and factors such as sex and unemployment status were found to be insignificant.

APA

Sagård, T. (2021). What factors may induce support for terrorism? Peace Research Institute Oslo. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/20b371ee-a250-48e5-976e-9795dae67b81/Sagard - Who Is Likely to Support Terrorism - Conflict Trends 2-2021.pdf?inline=true

Chicago

Sagård, Tora. What factors may induce support for terrorism? Peace Research Institute Oslo, 2021. https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/20b371ee-a250-48e5-976e-9795dae67b81/Sagard - Who Is Likely to Support Terrorism - Conflict Trends 2-2021.pdf?inline=true.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |last1=Sagård |first1=Tora |title=What factors may induce support for terrorism? |publisher=Peace Research Institute Oslo |date=February 2021 |url=https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/20b371ee-a250-48e5-976e-9795dae67b81/Sagard - Who Is Likely to Support Terrorism - Conflict Trends 2-2021.pdf?inline=true |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{sagrd2021what, author = {Sagård, Tora}, title = {{What factors may induce support for terrorism?}}, institution = {Peace Research Institute Oslo}, year = {2021}, month = feb, url = {https://cdn.cloud.prio.org/files/20b371ee-a250-48e5-976e-9795dae67b81/Sagard - Who Is Likely to Support Terrorism - Conflict Trends 2-2021.pdf?inline=true}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }