Background: On the evening of November 26, 2008, Mumbai India was subject to a terrorist siege, an event now known as 26111, which lasted 60 plus hours and impacted individuals locally and around the world. Terrorism, an unfortunately common occurrence in India, has however not received significant attention in the literature. It was therefore our goal to describe the impact of 26/11 on a group of college students in downtown Mumbai seven months (2009) after the attacks. Methods: As part of a larger study looking at acculturation we compared the 2009 group of students with a group of students from the summer before (2008), and a group of graduate students and staff in the NYC area on the one year anniversary of 9/11 (NYC). Participants were evaluated on measures of perceived stress, traumatic stress, anger rumination and forgiveness. Results: Evaluation of the 2009 cohort illustrated the high impact of 26/11 on this population with more than half reporting elevations on measures of traumatic stress. Findings revealed higher reported levels of traumatic stress and perceived stress in the 2009 Mumbai cohort compared to the NYC cohort. The 2009 cohort also reported higher levels of anger rumination, lower levels of self-forgiveness and lower levels when asked to rate the importance of forgiveness compared to the 2008 cohort. Perceived stress, and forgiveness of others was not statistically different between the 2008 and 2009 cohorts. Conclusions: These findings paint a picture of ongoing traumatic consequence to terrorist events seven months after an event with possibly significant clinical and public health implications. However, given that this is the first evaluation of this kind in India, and cross-cultural conceptualization of trauma and terrorism are still being evaluated, it is still too soon to ascertain if these elevated levels of traumatic stress and anger rumination, and lower levels of forgiveness are secondary to cultural difference, chronic terrorism or o

The threat of terrorism is a concern in public facilities including schools. This study focused on school districts in a southwestern state. Terrorism emergency preparedness policies are well-documented as measures to protect students and staff in school districts from terrorism threats and vulnerabilities. However, those threats and vulnerabilities are still being experienced by school districts. The purpose of this study was to explore policy attributes that school administrators considered important to prevent from threats and vulnerabilities of terrorism incidents in their districts. The theoretical framework for this study was Kingdon's multiple streams theory. Research questions focused on evaluating whether Kingdon's multiple streams theory is predictive of how school district administrators implement policies related to terrorism preparedness. A case study design was employed, using a convenience sample of 18 public school administrators responsible for implementing policy related to terrorism threat. Interview data were analyzed using an inductive coding technique to identify themes and patterns. Results indicated that terrorism emergency policies had improved terrorism preparedness and strengthened the relationships between the school districts and other agencies; results also revealed that communications, safety drills, collaboration, and training are the primary factors influencing policy implementation. The implications for social change include informing school leaders of the importance of policy attributes that influence terrorism emergency preparedness and educating administrators on how to respond regarding parent and student unification during and after terrorist events. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

The events of September 11 th 2001 (9/11) provided a unique opportunity to investigate the psychological effects of terrorism in the United States. Although terrorist attacks occurred in the United States previously, the events of 9/11 marked the most devastating terrorist attack in recent U.S. History. Numerous studies have investigated the effects of 9/11 events in populations that were either directly or indirectly exposed. Despite numerous investigations, my literature review yielded only two studies examining the psychological effects of these events within the first month after the 9/11 attacks (Schuster et al., 2001; Silver, Holman, McIntosh, Poulin, & Gil-Riva, 2002). In this study, using an archived data set, some of the immediate psychological effects of 9/11 in a New York City metropolitan college sample ( n = 99) were investigated 10-30 days after the attacks using a self-report survey. The survey included demographic questions, physical and social proximities to the attacks, trauma symptoms as measured by the Impact of Events Scale (IES; Horowitz, Wilmer, & Alavarez, 1979), the Posttraumatic Check List (PCL; Weathers, Litz, Herman, Huska & Keane, 1993), and stressful information coping strategies (i.e., Monitoring and Blunting) using the Miller Behavioral Style Scale (MBSS; Miller, 1987). First, missing data were analyzed to determine if data were missing completely at random using 'Little' Missing Completely at Random (LMCAR). After no significant differences were found using LMCAR, Expectation-Maximum algorithm was used to calculate single imputation. Eight multiple regression analyses were conducted to determine if six predictors per regression (e.g., age, gender, physical proximity, social proximity, or media [live or multiple replay]) predicted acute stress reactions as measured by the IES and PCL as continuous variables. Moderation effects were also investigated (i.e., gender, race, Monitoring and Blunting coping strategies). Third, cutoff scores

BACKGROUND: On the evening of November 26, 2008, Mumbai India was subject to a terrorist siege, an event now known as 26111, which lasted 60 plus hours and impacted individuals locally and around the world. Terrorism, an unfortunately common occurrence in India, has however not received significant attention in the literature. It was therefore our goal to describe the impact of 26/11 on a group of college students in downtown Mumbai seven months (2009) after the attacks. METHODS: As part of a larger study looking at acculturation we compared the 2009 group of students with a group of students from the summer before (2008), and a group of graduate students and staff in the NYC area on the one year anniversary of 9/11 (NYC). Participants were evaluated on measures of perceived stress, traumatic stress, anger rumination and forgiveness. RESULTS: Evaluation of the 2009 cohort illustrated the high impact of 26/11 on this population with more than half reporting elevations on measures of traumatic stress. Findings revealed higher reported levels of traumatic stress and perceived stress in the 2009 Mumbai cohort compared to the NYC cohort. The 2009 cohort also reported higher levels of anger rumination, lower levels of self-forgiveness and lower levels when asked to rate the importance of forgiveness compared to the 2008 cohort. Perceived stress, and forgiveness of others was not statistically different between the 2008 and 2009 cohorts. CONCLUSIONS: These findings paint a picture of ongoing traumatic consequence to terrorist events seven months after an event with possibly significant clinical and public health implications. However, given that this is the first evaluation of this kind in India, and cross-cultural conceptualization of trauma and terrorism are still being evaluated, it is still too soon to ascertain if these elevated levels of traumatic stress and anger rumination, and lower levels of forgiveness are secondary to cultural difference, chronic terrorism or o

In recent years, the fears of war and terrorist attacks have become common among children across all cultures. Acts of terrorism convey specific kinds of fears: that the world is unsafe, that even a caregiver cannot protect the child and that people whom the child has never met want to target and hurt him. Young children, such as preschoolers, rely on caregivers as their support system to mediate their posttraumatic symptoms after a traumatic event. Because the threat of terror affects the family as a whole, the importance of the attachment relationship between the parent and the child can play an important role in building resiliency. The goal of this dissertation was to provide information about posttraumatic stress symptoms in children, and the effect such symptoms have on children's development. It also focused on the attachment relationship as a key factor in building resilience and helping the child overcome his symptoms. Other topics that were reviewed included evidence-based interventions for traumatized children that are found to be the most beneficial for this population. Further, bibliotherapy as an effective intervention for young children was discussed and, finally, in order to gain a better understanding of the available resources for younger children, books in the field of trauma were evaluated. Due to the lack of children's books that deal with the fear of terrorist attacks, and the important role of the caregiver and the attachment relationship for the child's recovery from this potentially traumatic event, an interactive parent-child book was created. The book incorporates evidence-based components from various cognitive-behavioral approaches that are found to be most helpful in reducing the posttraumatic symptoms of this population, as well as activities for both the parent and the child that will enhance the parent-child relationship. It is hoped that this therapeutic book can be a source for the parent and the child to refer to in times of every

The events on 11, September 2001, have perceptibly transformed the conduct of international politics on several dimensions. While most nation-states rushed to clarify their position on the global terrorism debate some were re-evaluating public discourse in light of their own struggles against religious extremism. One such nation was India whose contentious relationship with Pakistan over the state of Jammu and Kashmir, raises concerns about Pakistani sponsored Islamist terrorism in this region. The Indian press coverage of September 2001 and its aftermath shows a concerted effort to position India in line with other global democracies on this war against terror, while simultaneously attempting to undermine its neighbor and political rival. The global discourse on terrorism thus extends beyond a divide between democracy and authoritarianism in becoming a political opportunity for other nation states. By critically examining scholarly literature on 'free flow' and 'dependency' theories this study explores how the Indian press read global discourses on terrorism following the attacks in New York and the United States. Content and textual analyses were used to compare media discourses in India and United States; to determine if news frames on terrorism in both countries converged after the terrorist attacks. Results indicated a negotiated reading of terrorist discourses and localized constructions of terrorism in the Indian press. Furthermore, an analysis of media texts also demonstrated that the Indian press were somewhat resistant to the notion of a global pan-Islamist threat post 9/11, and were more likely to consider terrorism a state sponsored rather than a fringe activity. Thus, while acknowledging the value of structural and dependency theories, this study additionally argues for a more complex understanding of 'information flows,' on the grounds that a nation's readings of international events are localized to its own cultural history and political aspirations.

This dissertation explored cross-cultural variations in risk perceptions of natural disasters and terrorist events, differences between self and other risk, and the effect of education on risk estimates among mental health professionals. Samples of convenience were obtained during a series of general disaster mental health trainings held in Japan, Argentina, and the United States. After viewing slides of a real life natural disaster (tsunami) and a terrorist attack, participants were asked to estimate lifetime odds of dying for themselves and others. Following the training, participants were shown paired slides of similar hazards and again estimated lifetime odds of dying from the given events. The results indicated significant differences between cultures, higher estimations of risk across all participants for terrorist events, and a nonsignificant effect for education/training. Participants across all cultures rated risk to self as lower than risk to others. Overall, Japanese participants had the highest risk perceptions for tsunamis and terrorism, followed by Argentinean and North American participants respectively. Limitations of the study and recommendations for future research are presented. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

The potential for negative consequences from an overreaction to terrorism raises important questions about the nexus between news media, a socially conservative political identity, and the fear of terrorist attacks. A meta-theoretical argument here contends that the news media is complicit in spreading collective fear, which is an essential catalyst making solidarity and adherence to hegemonic social control more effective. Four hundred twenty six respondents were chosen through random cluster sampling techniques in three US states: Arizona, California, and Nevada. Selected respondents completed a paper survey in 2009. Multiple regression analysis revealed that news media consumption frequency, social conservatism, biological sex, Whiteness, and identifying Protestantism or Agnosticism as religious preferences were related to the fear of terrorist attacks. Age, religious service attendance, annual income, education, and other racial or religious group identities were not related to this fear, however. Analysis of Covariance (ANCOVA) testing for news media preferences found that people who trusted USA Today were more fearful of terrorism than individuals that trusted the New York Times, or those who did not trust any newspapers. Further ANCOVA results indicated that Internet news sources and television channel preferences did not affect this fear when controlling for news media consumption frequency, social conservatism, and biological sex. Definitional content analysis confirmed that popular meanings for the term are highly contested and usually focus on quasi-legal interpretations. Despite some limitations, these findings support previous research on the fear of terrorism. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)

Terrorism poses a major threat to nations around the world in terms of its negative consequences. State policies to curb terrorism have become a central item in government agendas. Turkey has had a prolonged problem with terrorist violence, predominantly the Kurdistan Workers' Party (PKK) that has resulted in approximately 35,000 fatalities. To thwart PKK violence, Turkey has implemented diversified policies, including those that are deterrence, anti-defiance and accommodative in nature. The main purpose of this research was to examine Turkish Government's policies during the PKK violence (1984-2007), and to analyze the effects of these policies in reducing PKK violence. Using quantitative and qualitative techniques on various large-scale datasets, I conducted descriptive and statistical (VAR) analyses to address the problem. Based on these analyses, I found that, despite the deterrent effect of certain policies in the mid-run, none had a sustainable deterrent impact on the PKK violence (in the entire span). I also found that incapacitating PKK members had a statistically significant counterproductive impact on PKK-initiated violence for a three month period. I also examined the PKK's internal dynamics and identified the relationship between the PKK's strategic moves and its use of violence. I found that the level and other aspects (i.e., form, purpose, location, and target status) of PKK violence were directly related to the PKK's strategic decisions, rather than to government policies. I found, however, that the PKK's evolution in different strategies has been as a result of government's deterrence policies that defeated and forced the PKK to readjust its goals and strategies over the time. However, these policies are highly likely to be perceived illegitimate and have the nature to increase anti-governmental hostility, in turn, to increase the support level from Turkey's Kurdish society to the PKK (keeping its viability). Results also indicated that despite its m

This dissertation is the culmination of four years of exploratory ethnographic research investigating the impact of the 9/11 World Trade Center attacks on Arab Muslims, intergroup relationships and community life in working class neighborhoods of Jersey City, NJ, that came under intense scrutiny for suspected ties to terrorism. Anchored in the everyday experiences of community members, this dissertation presents an important historical and ethnographic account of what it was like to live in neighborhoods that the FBI and media labeled "Terror Town." Drawing on extensive participant observation and over one hundred interviews, this research illustrates how the attack of 9/11 sparked a critical turning point in the construction of collective identity, the shifting of group alliances, and the nature of intergroup relationships for Arab Muslims and their neighbors. It was not so much the attack of 9/11 itself, but what came in its aftermath '“ the state war on terrorism, the media images and stories linking Arab Muslims with terrorists, and the social and economic backlash against Arab Muslims '“ that caused such profound social effects. Theoretically, the findings offer original and compelling insight into key sociological issues in the fields of race and ethnicity, identity, community and urban sociology, trauma and disasters, social movements and collective memory. (PsycINFO Database Record (c) 2016 APA, all rights reserved)