Deviance and Dissent.A Sociological Approach to Terrorism

Since there is no definition of "terrorism" upon which all the world nations agree, this article proposes to approach the phenomenon on the basis of normative concepts widely recognized by social scientists. We think the issue would be more manageable if we use terms like "deviance" and "dissent" to describe terrorism to those people who are suffering from its consequences (Iraq, Pakistan, Afghanistan, Israel-Palestine, etc.), without alienating them: that would move the problem from the field of fear and passivity quite anchored in the minds, to put the stress more on the politically and morally unsocial behavior. On the level of the media and the public diplomacy, this approach may reveal to be rewarding, over time.