Dr. Michael Logan co-authors article in Terrorism and Political Violence

“Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE), Adolescent Misconduct, and Violent Extremism: A Comparison of Former Left-Wing and Right-Wing Extremists”

KENNESAW, Ga. (Aug 17, 2022) — Alongside Drs. Steven Windisch (Temple University) and Pete Simi (Chapman University), Kennesaw State faculty member Michael Logan recently published an article titled, “Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE), Adolescent Misconduct, and Violent Extremism: A Comparison of Former Left-Wing and Right-Wing Extremists” in Terrorism and Political Violence. Utilizing the Risk Factor Model of Violent Extremism, the article focuses on the extent and nature of early childhood trauma among former left-wing and right-wing extremists. For more information on this publication, please use the following link:

https://www.tandfonline.com/doi/abs/10.1080/09546553.2022.2098725

Abstract: The current paper compares the prevalence and nature of childhood adversity among twenty former left-wing and right-wing extremists. Findings from the Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) questionnaire suggest that exposure to childhood adversity was common in the early lives of both extremist types. For example, 50% of LWE and 70% of RWE experienced four or more ACE exposures during the first eighteen years of their life. The results also demonstrate that participants in both samples experienced a range of adolescent conduct problems. These conduct issues highlight the cascading effects of childhood adversity, where negative events help produce a downward spiral that ultimately increases a person’s susceptibility to extremism. Despite the relatively small sample, findings from this exploratory study build on the risk factor model of violent extremism by highlighting childhood adversity and adolescent misconduct as nonideological precursors to violent extremism among different types of extremists.