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No Reliable Terrorist Profile Exists
- There is no psychological profile that reliably predicts who will become a terrorist.
- Four decades of research have failed to produce a consistent profile despite ongoing searches and interest in the question.
Research Needs Disengaged Former Terrorists
- Studying terrorists requires patient, systematic engagement with people who have disengaged to ask them why they joined and left.
- Horgan emphasizes we're at early stages building a science of terrorist behavior and psychology's contribution is limited so far.
Attacks Hurt Resilience More Than Security
- Large attacks like the Boston Marathon can damage societal resilience by inflating perceived existential threat.
- Details suggesting the attack likely couldn't have been prevented show there was very little leakage or warning signals beforehand.