Power of the network and power from the network: Group processes and radicalization

Abstract

The 3N model of radicalization posits that radicalization results from the confluence of the need for significance, the narrative, and the network. The network validates the narrative and rewards with significance those who adhere to it. Thus, it is critical to the radicalization process, leading scholars to suggest that no violent extremist truly acts alone. Similarly, understanding the role of the network is crucial to understanding and facilitating deradicalization, for one who is disillusioned with a violent extremist ideology may not leave their group if they lack an alternative group to replace it. This article discusses the power of the network in radicalization and deradicalization and proposes a novel theory of distinguishing between violent extremists who are more versus less influenced by their network, leading them to perpetrate violence in groups or on their own, respectively.