Moving beyond terror groups to examine non-state actors including warlords, gangs and private security companies, Violent Non-State Actors: • Guides you through the core theories and concepts, taking a multidisciplinary approach • Examines different explanations for the emergence of violent non-state actors as well as strategies for dealing with them • Weaves in international case studies from groups including the Islamic State, Los Zetas, Hamas, and Al Qaeda, as well as discussion questions, further reading and definitions of key terms A must read for upper-level undergraduate and postgraduate students in politics, international relations, security and terrorism studies.

State-Level Explanations

State-Level Explanations

Key Terms

  • Democide
  • Proportional representation
  • Relative deprivation
  • Security gaps
  • State capture
  • State repression

While global factors help explain what facilitates the formation and endurance of violent groups, state-level factors provide a more direct explanation for why these groups might emerge in the first place. This chapter first looks at motivational factors that help to explain the emergence of violent non-state actors at the state level, such as socio-economic factors, repressive policies and an absence of services. The second half of the chapter will explore theories that explain the opportunities for violent groups to emerge, such as institutional weakness and incapacity. State-level factors have largely come to play when explaining the development of all different types of violent non-state actors.

Motivational Factors

What factors encourage violent non-state actors to form? The ...

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