Schmid solved the definitional dilemma by combining a conglomerate of terrorism definitions. What was the final result?
The final result of the combination was the “academic consensus definition,” which is widely used today. Out of the twenty-two common elements of most definitions, Schmid chose thirteen elements. Schmid’s definition is prominently cited by the United Nations and as quoted by White (2006) it states:
Terrorism is an anxiety inspiring method of repeated violent action, employed by (semi-) clandestine individual, group or state actors, for idiosyncratic, criminal or political reasons, whereby – in contrast to assassination – the direct targets of violence are not the main targets. The immediate human victims of violence are generally chosen randomly (targets of opportunity) or selectively (representative or symbolic targets) from a target population, and serve as message generators. Threat-and-violence-based communication processes between terrorist (organization), (imperiled) victims, and main targets are used to manipulate the main target (audience(s)), turning it into a target of terror, a target of demands, or a target of attention, depending on whether intimidation, coercion, or propaganda is primarily sought. (p. 7)
Reference
White, J.R. (2006). Terrorism and Homeland Security. (5th Ed.). Belmont, CA: Thomson-Wadsworth.
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