Abstract
Using new and unique events data, this thesis examines the evolution of right-wing terrorism and violence in post-WWII Western Europe. Notably, the thesis shows that that the number of deadly events has declined in Western Europe under conditions commonly assumed to stimulate right-wing violence, such as increased immigration and growing support for radical right parties. It also shows that some countries have experienced considerably more right-wing violence than others between 1990 and 2015. To explain this variation, the thesis identifies two explanatory models. In Northern Europe, right-wing violence has been most extensive in countries characterized by high immigration combined with low support for anti-immigration parties and public repression of radical right actors and opinions. In Southern Europe, right-wing violence has been most extensive in countries characterized by authoritarian legacies combined with socio-economic hardship and extensive left-wing terrorism. Finally, the thesis offers an in-depth study of the Nordic countries aimed at explaining why right-wing terrorism and militancy have been more widespread in Sweden than in Denmark, Finland, and Norway.
List of papers
Article I: Jacob Aasland Ravndal. Thugs or Terrorists? A Typology of Right-Wing Terrorism and Violence in Western Europe. Journal of deradicalization, 2015, no 3, pp 1-38. The article is included in the thesis. |
Article II: Jacob Aasland Ravndal. Right-Wing Terrorism and Violence in Western Europe: Introducing the RTV Dataset. Perspectives on terrorism, 2016, vol 10(3), pp 2-15. The article is included in the thesis. |
Article III: Jacob Aasland Ravndal. Explaining Right-Wing Terrorism and Violence in Western Europe: Grievances, Opportunities, and Polarization. Unpublished manuscript. The paper is included in the thesis. The published version is available at https://doi.org/10.1111/1475-6765.12254 |
Article IV: Jacob Aasland Ravndal (2018): Right-wing Terrorism and Militancy in the Nordic Countries: A Comparative Case Study. Terrorism and Political Violence. The paper is not available in DUO due to publisher restrictions. The published version is available at: https://doi.org/10.1080/09546553.2018.1445888 |