It is the middle of a normal workday and a commuter train somewhere in Europe is packed with simple working people anxious to get home to their families. It is a diverse mix of people and cultures, that is a microcosm of the community that the train is traveling in. In the center of one of the crowded cars sits an angry looking fat Arab. Stinking of curry, he clutches his travel bag as he waits for just the right moment. For he knows that in only seconds he will be in heaven with his 72 beautiful young wives, at his lecherous and perverted beck and call.
Diffusing a Human Bomb
What is it that motivates these people to inflict such pain and misery on groups of innocent undeserving people. Is there any way that a psychologist can get into their minds and diffuse them in much the same way as an explosives expert diffuses an unexploded bomb on a conventional battle field? This is a question that more and more law enforcement experts are asking and it is just one of the areas that government officials are looking for a solution to the scourge of terrorism.
New Negotiating Techniques
Terrorism psychology is one of the fastest growing areas in the field of psychology today and this is why more and more law enforcement academies are offering it in their study curriculum. For instance, crime scene negotiators are now being taught how to deal a multitude of suicide scenarios that include even the suicide bomber bent on mass murder.
Lear What to Look for
Also, security and safety experts that man the countries airports and train stations are being taught new ways to recognize a potential threat of this greater magnitude. This is done by learning psychological danger signals that a potential terrorist might unknowingly demonstrate or broadcast. The good news is that most, if not all of what has been discovered and learned in the field of terrorism psychology is unclassified, which means that this information is available to the general public.
