Anthony Giddens • Sociology 5th Edition

Sociology and Terrorism

The world can be a terrifying place.

In August 2006, an alleged plot to kill thousands of people on up to 10 transatlantic flights was uncovered. The plan, it seems, was to blow up passenger jets with explosives disguised as soft drinks or other seemingly harmless fluids. On board, they would have been combined with a detonating device, possibly hidden in an iPod or mobile phone. If successful, the plot would have resulted in massive loss of life.

Only a year before, on July 7th, four suicide bombers killed 52 people on the London transport system, and seriously injured many others. Just two weeks later, there were four more explosions on the London Underground and on a bus. This time the bombs failed to explode properly and there were no casualties.

Many more terrorist attacks have taken place in the past few years – for example in Madrid and in New York. Even more recently, at the end of August 2006, British holidaymakers and locals were seriously injured by bomb attacks at a Turkish seaside resort. Attacks at other holiday destinations, such as Bali in Indonesia and Sharm al-Sheikh in Egypt, have also taken place.

But what has any of this got to do with sociology? Here, in a special interview, Anthony Giddens gives his personal response to this question. He argues that terrorism is a problem sociologists can help us to understand, and that sociology can also give us hope for the future.

We've also added some tips about using Sociology to research terrorism, and have suggested some other websites you might want to visit to learn more about this issue.

Sociology and Terrorism

What can sociology tell us about terrorism in the world today?

The issue of terrorism is essentially a sociological one, since it is social and cultural influences that prompt people to engage in terrorist acts. One of the most important emphases of sociology is the crucial importance of globalization for our times. Globalization also helps to explain terrorism.

We have to make a distinction between ‘old style' terrorism and ‘new style' terrorism. Old style terrorism is the kind represented by the IRA in Northern Ireland. It is essentially local and concerned with creating a unified nation in Ireland.

New style terrorism is much more global. It is in fact in large part a reflection of globalization. In new style terrorism, there are often networks stretching across many countries. The aims of new style terrorists are much larger than those of groups such as the IRA. The events of 9/11 in the US were an expression of new style terrorism that could not have been organised without the technology of globalization – the Internet, mobile phones and other forms of modern technology. The same applies to the large scale terrorist plot which the police in Britain uncovered in August 2006.

Is terrorism the biggest social problem we currently face?

New style terrorism is one of the most important dangers we face today. The main reason is its extensive and potentially violent nature. 3000 people were killed in the events of 9/11, but if the Twin Towers had collapsed more quickly, 50,000 could have died. The biggest worry in respect of such terrorism is the possibility (fortunately a low possibility) that a terrorist group will acquire a nuclear weapon and use it in a crowded urban area.

How should we respond to the threats posed by terrorism, or tackle its causes?

The new terrorism, as stressed, is global and therefore our responses have to be at a worldwide level. Terrorism in the future will not be confined to any one country and it is a mistake to suppose that only radical Islam will be a source of danger as a terrorist activity. In the era of the Internet, acquiring the knowledge to make weaponry is relatively easy and other terrorist groups might very well arise – groups that are concerned with far right causes rather just than with religious ones. Timothy McVeigh, who killed 180 people by planting a bomb in an office building in Oklahoma City in the US, was a person advocating such a cause.

We have to respond to terrorism on several levels. The right to feel secure in the face of terrorism is itself an important human liberty. Some other liberties have to be to an extent modified in the interests of security. For instance, the police may need the right to hold people without trial for a longer period than in the past, because it takes a long time to accumulate evidence against groups operating in numerous different countries. We also have to try to close down sources of financial support to terrorists by having the right to freeze the bank accounts of people who are seriously suspected of terrorist activity. Terrorism doesn't spring simply from poverty, but improving the social conditions of people suffering from economic deprivation will also play a part.

Can we ever win the so-called 'war on terror'?

We should not really speak of ‘a war on terrorism'. The phrase tends to give terrorists too much dignity. Many forms of terrorism should be subject to criminal law. Rather than talking of ‘winning a war on terrorism', we should talk of increasing our personal security and of working together to create dialogue between people of different social and cultural groups.

Can individuals still make a difference in a world of global risks?

Individual activity not only can make a difference to reducing global risks, it is crucial to it. For instance, we shall not be able to deal with the dangers posed by climate change if we don't alter our own behaviour. We all have to learn that the environment is not a free good and reform our everyday actions accordingly. We are accustomed, for instance, to using as much water as we want to. Water in future will be metered so that we pay for what we use and understand that it is not ‘free'.

Much the same is true of the risks we face from global terrorism. Each individual can make a contribution by an active attempt to understand other cultures, and by avoiding prejudiced judgements about others. We can contribute directly to reducing the causes of cultural conflicts by trying to advance mutual understanding.

Can sociology give us any hope for the future?

The prime reason why sociology is important is in diagnosing both the risks we face and the positive possibilities we have for our future. It is a mistake only to concentrate on the risks and dangers. There are many positive possibilities for our lives which we see all around us. For instance, in spite of the many health risks that exist, we are all living longer than a generation ago. To take another example, the Internet can be used for dangerous purposes, as in the case of new style terrorism. On the other hand, the Internet also offers important possibilities for education, for worldwide debate and interchange of ideas, and for communication between human beings.

Additional materials

Guide to researching terrorism in Sociology

The 5th edition of Giddens' Sociology discusses the problem of terrorism in Chapter 20 ‘Politics, Government and Terrorism'. The section on terrorism begins on p. 879, and features some startling photographs of the 9/11 attacks on the Twin Towers in New York, and the London bus bombing in July 2005. Giddens goes on to explore the origins of terrorism, and explains in more detail differences between ‘old' and ‘new' style terrorism. Elsewhere in the chapter, he looks at social movements (p. 842-3, 867-871), nationalism (p. 871-879), the global spread of democracy (p. 850-858), and the Iraq war (p. 842-843, 861) – all issues which provide a context that helps to explain the causes of and reactions to terrorism and violent conflict.

Internet links

You might also find the following Internet links helpful when researching the problem of terrorism. Don't forget that the lecturer and student resource sections of the Sociology website include additional learning resources related to this topic.

Copyright © Anthony Giddens 2006

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