Author featured on the hit NetFlix series How to Become A Tyrant! Also by the author, Threat to Democracy: The Appeal of Authoritarianism in an Age of Uncertainty, a timely read for our current political environment, which was mentioned on NPR Marketplace Tech.

Radicalization has become a serious global problem. Groups and nations are increasingly embroiled in escalating conflicts with one another that are defined by pathological hatred and ideological polarization, with devastating consequences including terrorism and war. Social psychologist Fathali M. Moghaddam calls this process mutual radicalization. In this groundbreaking book, he explores its causes and potential solutions.

Drawing from well-established psychological principles, Moghaddam presents a dynamic, cyclical three-stage model of mutual radicalization that explains how groups gather under extremist ideologies, establish rigid norms under authoritarian leadership, and develop antagonistic worldviews that exaggerate the threats posed by each other. This process leads to intensifying aggressive actions that can even reach the point of mutual destruction. Moghaddam applies his model to ten real-world case studies of mutual radicalization that focus on three main areas: the conflict between Islamist radicals and extreme nationalists in the West; nations that are mired in longstanding hostilities, including North Korea and South Korea; and the increasingly toxic atmosphere in American politics. Moghaddam also offers practical solutions for achieving deradicalization and highlights historical successes, such as German reunification.

About the Author

Fathali M. Moghaddam, PhD, is a professor of psychology and director of the Interdisciplinary Program in Cognitive Science at Georgetown University. He is editor-in-chief of the APA journal Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology. Dr. Moghaddam was born in Iran, educated from an early age in England, and returned to Iran to study radicalization and change processes during and after the 1979 revolution. His most recent published books are The Psychology of Dictatorship (2013), The Psychology of Democracy (2016), Questioning Causality (with Rom Harre, 2016), and the two-volume The SAGE Encyclopedia of Political Behavior (2017). His ongoing research focuses on the cognitive processes underlying radicalization, democracy, and dictatorship.

Book Information
ISBN 9781433829239
Author Fathali M. Moghaddam
Format Paperback
Page Count 259
Imprint American Psychological Association
Publisher American Psychological Association