“The ideology becomes a way to make sense of that disconnection”: Beliefs, behaviour and belonging – does ideology matter in countering violent extremism?

ABSTRACT

The role of ideology in driving radicalisation to violent extremism is a more multifaceted and contested question than it may at first appear. While various explanatory models of radicalisation do suggest that ideology is an important precursor to the use of violence, other research has warned of various potential risks associated with focusing on the ideas in an individual’s mind, rather than the actions they carry out. This article engages with such complexities regarding the issue of ideology, drawing from interviews with twelve Countering Violent Extremism (CVE) practitioners based in various states and territories of Australia. Our focus is on their conceptual insights and working practices regarding the role of ideology in radicalisation to violent extremism, placing these in the context of existing literature, debates and other front-line experiences to explore whether, and in what ways, ideology matters for CVE efforts.

KEYWORDS:

• Countering violent extremism
• ideology
• intervention
• radicalisation
• suspect communities
• counter-narratives

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Notes

1. The distinction between “religiously” and “ideologically motivated violent extremism” was recently introduced by the Australian Security Intelligence Organisation (ASIO) in their threat categorisation. The terminology has been critiqued for its apparent de-emphasis of links between right-wing ideological beliefs and extremist violence, especially given the long history of specific focus on Islamic jihadist terrorism (Khalil 2021).

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Ben Adams

Ben Adams is a Research Assistant in the School of Education at University of Queensland, having contributed to a number of projects focused on the sociology of schooling in a neoliberal context, gendered learner identities and subjectivities, masculinity studies, educational inequalities, countering violent extremism and restorative practices in schools.

Garth Stahl

Garth Stahl is an Associate Professor in the School of Education at University of Queensland and Research Fellow, Australian Research Council (DECRA). His research interests lie on the nexus of neoliberalism and socio-cultural studies of education, identity, equity/inequality, and social change.

Glenys Oberg

Glenys Oberg is a Research Assistant in the School of Education at University of Queensland, having contributed to a number of projects focused on trauma and education.