Professional Documents
Culture Documents
Understanding and Prevention of Radicalization Among Youth
Understanding and Prevention of Radicalization Among Youth
PREVENTION OF
RADICALIZATION
AMONG YOUTH
introduction
Alarmed by the ongoing presence of extremist movements in the EU,
Foundation "Solidarity Works" and its international partner
consortium of youth organizations gathered active young people,
youth workers, activists, teachers, and psychologists. from European
and neighboring countries to discuss radicalization and extremism
which continuously threaten democracies and endanger the well-
being of young people.
Institutions working with youth and their staff need to develop and
exchange tools, methods, and good practices that counteract
radicalization. In that regard, participants shared research from their
home countries which included information about prevalence
statistics for radicalization, legal repercussions for perpetrators,
state policies, and initiatives by civic society groups and NGOs. An
outcome of gathering the information from participating countries
was building up a unique set of best practices and recommendations
to prevent radicalization among youth. As it was concluded, an
indispensable part of the process of combating radicalization is a
collaboration between public institutions, and professionals in the
field of psychology, social, and youth work to extend the capacity of
programs for all of the prevention stakeholders.
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International partners:
Association for Education and Sustainable Development BRIGHT,
North Macedonia
Young Effect, Magenta, Italy
Alternativni centar za devojke, Serbia
"Odlar Yurdu" Youth Public Union, Azerbaijan
Kulturno umetniško društvo "Transformator", Slovenia
Dacorum Council for Voluntary Service, United Kindom
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CONTENTS
Partners . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PAGE 04
Key concepts . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PAGE 06
Recommendations . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PAGE 09
Tools . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . PAGE 11
Research questions . . . . . . . . . . . . . PAGE 21
Additional resources . . . . . . . . . . . . PAGE 23
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"UNDERSTANDING AND PREVENTION OF RADICALIZATION AMONG YOUTH"
PARTNERS
ASSOCIAZIONE DI PROMOZIONE SOCIALE YOUNG EFFECT, Italy
www.youngeffect.org | info@youngeffect.org
www.communityactiondacorum.org.uk|helen@communityactiondacorum.org.uk
www.alternativegirlscenter.org | jelenamemet@gmail.com
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"UNDERSTANDING AND PREVENTION OF RADICALIZATION AMONG YOUTH"
www.kudtransformator.com | barbara.polajnar@gmail.com
vladimirgjorgjevski@gmail.com
https://oygib.az/ | odlaryurduyouth@gmail.com
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"UNDERSTANDING AND PREVENTION OF RADICALIZATION AMONG YOUTH"
KEY CONCEPTS
FROM RADICALIZATION TO EXTREMISM
Extracted from: Muro, D. (2016, December). What does radicalisation look like? Four
visualisations of socialisation into violent extremism. CIDOB.
The terms “radicalisation” and “extremism” are often used synonymously in everyday
language. From the point of view of security authorities, however, there is a clear
distinction between the two: radicalisation is the forerunner of extremism and is not
punishable.
“RADICAL“ can be understood as the position people take when looking for a profound
transformation of the system they live in to achieve a very different system. As such,
radicalisation does not aim to transform systems at the expense of “the other”, and it is
not inherently associated with violent methods.
Security authorities draw the line when it comes to criminal behavior and speak of
extremism when violence is seen as a legitimate means of pursuing one’s own political
interests.
Here are 4 models which help to understand the process through which individuals
and/or groups move from radicalisation to extremism:
Radicalization as a process
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Figure 2 indicates the four-stage process begins by identifying some unsatisfying event,
condition, or grievance (“It's not right”) and framing it as being unjust (“It's not fair”).
The third stage involves blaming the injustice on a target policy, person, or nation (“It's
your fault”) and the fourth and final stage involves identifying, vilifying, and even
demonizing the responsible party (“You're evil”), which facilitates the justification of or
impetus to aggression. The model successfully describes the progression involved in a
process of ideological radicalization but is unable to forecast when individuals will take
the ultimate step of using indiscriminate political violence.
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Figure 4 indicates, that the apex of the pyramid represents the small number of active
terrorists who remain relatively few in number when considered in relation to all those
who may sympathize with their beliefs and feelings (e.g. superiority, injustice, distrust,
vulnerability, etc.). The lower level of activists is composed of those who are not
committing violent acts themselves but provide those sitting at the top with tacit
support (e.g. recruitment, political or financial support, etc.). The level below is made
up of the far larger group of supporters who justify the goals the terrorists say they are
fighting for but also, crucially, the violent means. The base of the pyramid is made of a
far larger group of sympathizers who agree with the goals the terrorists say they are
fighting for. This wider community of reference would constitute the social group the
terrorist group is claiming to represent.
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RECOMMENDATIONS
RECOMMENDATIONS FOR YOUTH WORKERS
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TOOLS
Name of the activity:
Image theater
Time:
90 min
Group size:
20
Description:
How can we create more meaningful dialogue among young people when
talking about radicalization? How might we effectively explore concepts such as
extremism, peace, and violence through statues in our city? The Image Theater
technique, a tool developed by Brazilian director Augusto Boal (author of
Theater of the Oppressed), can provide a useful way to engage young people
in creative and critical reflection.
Goal:
Image theater is a flexible tool for exploring issues, attitudes, and emotions
both with groups who have explored theater before and those with little or no
experience. No one has lines to learn or has to ‘act’ in front of others. Creating
still images can enable participants to explore their feelings and experiences in
a less forbidding way than that offered by improvisational techniques.
Instructions:
Form a Circle: Invite your group to form a circle in the center of the
workroom, standing around the space that will become their "theatre".
Identify Actors: Ask for 2 volunteers to become actors to enter the theatre
space in the center.
Construct an Image: Quickly work with these actors to move into a pose
that you construct (something as simple as a handshake works well, or you
can ask the actors to quickly create a pose). Ask the actors to freeze their
pose, creating an image or snapshot.
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Describe & Imagine: The group participants standing around the outside of
the circle can now take some time to look closely at the image in front of
them, and the facilitator invites group members to begin describing what
they see — using their imaginations to construct stories, narratives, and
relationships based on the visual and physical evidence they have before
them (body pose, gestures, facial expression, clothing, etc.). Begin to delve
into questions of power — who has it? who doesn’t? what evidence
indicates that?
Thought Bubble: After you “interview” the group’s imagination and develop
several stories about the image created by the 2 actors’ bodies, you can
also use a paper or cardboard thought bubble to ask participants what
they think the characters might be thinking — probing their internal
thoughts and emotions.
Shift & Re-Examine: Now, have the actors make a simple change to their
pose that will flip the dynamic between their characters — sometimes as
simple as having one of the actors kneel, sit, or take a different physical
position. Re-interview the group participants about the new image, and
what is different. Has the power relationship changed? Why? What else
might be going on here? You can use the thought bubble again to probe
the internal thoughts of the characters.
Materials:
A4 paper, pencils
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Time:
60 min
Group size:
30
Description:
The World Cafe is a method that makes use of an informal cafe setting for
participants to explore an issue by discussing it in small table groups.
Discussion is held in multiple rounds of 20-30 minutes, with the cafe ambiance
intended to allow for more relaxed and open conversations to take place.
Goal:
The World Cafe methodology is based on the belief that 'we are wiser together'
and that the future can be shaped 'through conversations that matter'. It is a
method that is therefore best used for:
gathering collective intelligence on experiences or ideas around an issue
generating new ideas
collaboration and network building.
Instructions:
The World Cafe is an engagement process designed to take place in a cafe
setting (either in an actual cafe or else the room is set up to resemble one as
much as possible so that participants are seated around small tables with
tablecloths and tea, coffee and other beverages). The idea behind this is to
create a space that supports 'good conversation', where anybody can talk
about things that matter to the topic.
Each round is initiated with a specific question related to the overall purpose of
the event. The same questions can be used for more than one round or they
can build upon one another. The choice of question(s) is crucial to the success
of the event. In general, it is useful to phrase the questions in a positive format
and open-ended format to allow a constructive discussion. If participants do
not find the questions for discussion inspiring the event is unlikely to be
successful, it can therefore be good to develop the question together with
some of the intended participants.
During the event, participants discuss the questions at their table, before
moving on to a new table/group for each new round. Often participants are
provided with pens and are encouraged to draw and record their
conversations on the paper tablecloths to capture free-flowing ideas as they
emerge.
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One participant (the table host) remains and summarizes the previous
conversation to the newly arrived participants. By moving participants around
the room, the conversations at each table are cross-fertilized with ideas from
other tables, resulting in collective intelligence. At the end of the process, the
main ideas are summarized in a plenary session and follow-up possibilities are
discussed.
A topic that can be discussed in the world cafè:
1 Symbol, colors (Shaved hairs, etc.)
2 External factors (Economical crisis etc.)
3 Protective factors (Stable familiar position etc.)
Materials:
Pens, flipchart paper
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Time:
90 min
Group size:
30
Goal:
To reflect on one's history.
To compare the histories and find the contact points in history between
civilizations.
Analyze the connections between the cultures in history - what were they
and what did they bring in terms of change?
Understand how the conflict was often in the past a connection/contact
and put in the framework of the importance of international youth work,
and the birth of movements and how they spread internationally.
Instructions:
At first, participants will put different post-its on different times in history,
marking their country's/land's history line.
Secondly, they will look at links, at times in history when their countries came
into contact with each other. By using a string and connecting the events.
Participants are presented with a wall, on the vertical side there will be
different centuries, on the horizontal one the names of the countries present:
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"UNDERSTANDING AND PREVENTION OF RADICALIZATION AMONG YOUTH"
Materials:
Colored wool rolls, masking tape, A4 papers, large space on the wall.
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Created by:
Maggie Nazer, Executive director at Foundation "SolidarityWorks"
Time:
90 min
Group size:
21
Description:
This activity is a role play based on different scenarios that the participants
need to interpret using their creativity and imagination yet remaining in a
credible and real context.
Goal:
The objective of this activity is to imagine oneself within a possible scenario
that foresees the radicalization of one of the actors, therefore, exploring routes
to empathy and looking for possible solutions to prevent radicalization.
Instructions:
Participants should be divided into groups of three people.
Within each group, there will be a participant playing the role of a young
person at risk of radicalization, a participant playing the role of a professional
who attempts to provide support and better understand the situation in order
to adequately address it and a third participant who is the observer and note-
taker of the scene.
For each scenario, the two main actors read the role they have been given, and
have a few minutes to decide how to approach the conversation. The observer
reads the instructions for both active roles, analyzes the scenario, and gives
feedback on the discussion that has taken place during the roleplay. The
observer can also be encouraged to propose alternative solutions which can
support the prevention of radicalization.
Following the activity, a whole group discussion should take place to draw out
the experiences and insights of participants during the activity, and connect
them to possible intervention and communication strategies to be used in real
life. There is no right or wrong way to represent the scenarios. The variety of
approaches participants will have naturally developed in the process of role-
playing the scenarios is a useful practice to develop sensitivity and a
personalized approach to dealing with difficult situations involving youth.
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The trainer should refrain from judging one performance over another.
The trainer should also be ready to address conflicting views on how the
situations should be approached issues through dialogue, listening, and
making connections between the comments of participants.
Possible scenarios:
Scenario 1
Participant A: You are a 17-year-old male boy in a Swedish high school. Your
parents are from Iraq. You are generally well-liked at school. Two months ago
you had been approached by a group of guys at your local mosque who had
started asking you how you feel at school and told you about their experiences
with Islamophobia. You started reminding yourself of many microaggressions
you had lived through at school, at the supermarket, anywhere you’ve gone.
For instance, when others would say something that shows Muslims or
immigrants in a bad light, your friends would say: “Oh, yeah, but Ahmed is
different. He’s a good guy.”
You haven’t liked how they treated your community even if it wasn’t directed to
you. You’ve gotten closer with your mosque buddies and started spending
more time with them while your school friends have distanced themselves
from you for not spending as much time with them. Discussing ISIS events in
social class someone says that jihadists are monsters who don’t deserve to live
and starts speaking about how dangerous Muslims are. You are done keeping
silent, and in your anger, you say that maybe there are good reasons for what
they are doing. The teacher dismisses you from class and sends you to speak
with the school psychologist. As you exit the room in shock your classmates
and former friends shout: “Jihadist, go back from where you’ve come.” You are
scared that you will get expelled from school and that you will be stigmatized in
school.
Participant B: You are the psychologist in a high school in Sweden. The social
science teacher has sent you a 17-year-old Iraqi student telling you that there
has been an incident in class and that the student has expressed a radical
position in support of jihadist bombers. You need to find out more about the
situation from the student, and assess whether they might be in danger of
hurting themselves or others. What steps would you suggest to the student?
Who else would you talk with about the incident?
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Scenario 2
Participant A: You are 17, passionate about football, and play after school at
your local youth league club. Your friends are a part of an ultras group and
have all gotten matching tattoos, so you have done it too to not be singled out.
One night after a game, you and your friends get on a tram after a big game.
You have all been drinking, and when an old Roma man gets on the tram, your
friends start to insult and push him around. Things escalate and they start
kicking him. Another passenger on the tram calls the police, and they punch
him. Your group and you get off the tram and run away before the police catch
you, but the next day the local media reports the event along with a picture
done by another passenger on the tram on which you are visible. You are
scared that the police will now find you, and reach out to your friends who tell
you that it’s gonna blow off, to keep tight, and keep your mouth shut or else.
Two long days pass while you are scared shitless and suddenly your football
coach calls you to meet up. You have no idea if he knows about the incident,
and you are afraid of what the repercussions will be if you tell him the truth.
Participant B: You are the football coach at a local youth league club. While you
browse sports news at your preferred local online media website, you see a
picture of football hooligans who have beaten an old Roma man in the tram
and you recognize one of your boys. You know that sports radicalization is a
serious issue, and care about your player’s future and involvement in the
incident, as well as his potential to involve the other guys in your club in similar
activities. You need to establish trust with the boy, and discover as much as
possible to see if he has been subjected to radicalization, the extent to which
he has been radicalized, and see if he would be willing to exit the group, as well
as what would be needed to do so safely. What next steps would you suggest
to the student? What will be the next steps for you as his football coach?
Scenario 3:
Participant A: You are a 16-year-old girl. After joining a local feminist group
called RBSB (“Radical Bitchez Against Sexist Bros”) you have found a community
to which you feel truly connected. Two guys in your neighborhood who are
also students at your school have been harassing you for years with catcalling,
stalking, and ass grabbing. When they do it again, you finally speak up for
yourself, but it only makes them nasty and more determined to grope you.
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You share this with the RBSB girls, and they suggest “teach them a lesson” by
scaring them off. After school you see the guys smoking near the exit of the
school, and text RBSB. When they arrive, they beat up the two guys, breaking
one’s nose. The security of the school comes and RBSB runs away, along with
you, but the next day your master teacher (the one responsible for your class)
calls you in their office because the school guard has recognized you and
reported the incident to the school board. You are scared about what will
follow, but feel that the guys deserved what they got, and are determined to
not reveal the identity of your RSBS friends.
Participant B:
You are the master teacher responsible for 20 16-year-olds at your high
school. The school board has called you in and asked you to talk with one of
your students, a typically well-behaved girl with good grades who have
participated in a gang fight against two male students, resulting in one of the
guy’s broken nose. The incident has been reported to the police and the
parents of the boy with a broken nose are threatening to pursue legal action.
You need to figure out what has happened, find out what the gang is about,
and if the female student has been radicalized and may be at risk of hurting
herself or others, to report your findings to the school board and see what
actions would need to be taken. What actions would you suggest to her? What
actions would you suggest to the Board?
Materials:
A4 paper, pencils (for the observers)
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RESEARCH QUESTIONS
UNDERSTANDING AND PREVENTION OF
RADICALIZATION IN HOME COUNTRIES
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What are the social and cultural attitudes and norms towards
radicalization behavior, ideology, and other related aspects?
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ADDITIONAL RESOURCES
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THANK YOU!
International partners:
Association for Education and Sustainable Development BRIGHT,
North Macedonia
Young Effect, Magenta, Italy
Alternativni centar za devojke, Serbia
"Odlar Yurdu" Youth Public Union, Azerbajian
Kulturno umetniško društvo "Transformator", Slovenia
Dacorum Council for Voluntary Service, United Kindom