Terrorists's behavior

by John Horgan

Terrorism is first and foremost about psychological warfare. One of their main concerns is to project strength and power that far exceeds what they are capable of in reality. They come out of the shadows, strike, and then disappear again. They rely on these tactics because otherwise they would probably be destroyed, but also because it allows them to appear stronger and more powerful than they really are. They use fear and uncertainty to their advantage.

11 pages, Kindle Edition

Published September 4, 2018

About the author

JOHN HORGAN is a science journalist and Director of the Center for Science Writings at the Stevens Institute of Technology, Hoboken, New Jersey. A former senior writer at Scientific American (1986-1997), he has also written for The New York Times, Time, Newsweek, The Washington Post, The Los Angeles Times, The New Republic, Slate, Discover, The London Times, The Times Literary Supplement, New Scientist, and other publications around the world. He blogs for the Center for Science Writings and for Bloggingheads.tv (see links at left).

His latest book is Rational Mysticism: Dispatches from the Border Between Science and Spirituality, published in hardcover by Houghton Mifflin in January 2003 and in paperback by Mariner Books in March 2004.