Radicalisation has too many meanings
The wordradicalisationis often used in the political debate both nationally and at a local level. A large number of scientific disciplines have also adopted the concept.
Therefore, radicalisation is used in connection with everything from problems regarding integration and social conditions to questions about national security. The concept is used for the risk-prone behaviour of young people as a kind of diagnosis for attitudinally deviating individuals and environments.
But is it really possible to say what radicalisation is and why it takes place? And what are the pitfalls in the debate when the concept is used to describe people who simply look different or have an abnormal attitude or behaviour?
A new policy brief explains some of the key meanings and problems relating to the concept of radicalisation. The brief answers the ‘what, why and how’ questions about radicalisation and provides four recommendations for a more concrete and critical use of the term.
