Terror threat

We know little about women terrorists

The first large-scale research project evaluating the characteristics of women involved in jihadism-inspired terrorism finds significant differences between men and women in both their backgrounds and their roles within terrorist groups. The study highlights potential flaws in existing models of radicalization, threat assessment tools and counter-terrorism strategies – all of which rely primarily on data regarding male terrorists.

“There has only been one other large-scale study to evaluate the characteristics of women terrorists, and none that have looked exclusively at women in jihadism-inspired terrorist groups,” says Christine Brugh, lead author of a paper on the work and a Ph.D. student at North Carolina State University. “There have been no previous, large-scale studies to look at the roles women play in terrorist organizations.”