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Social Network Analysis: A Methodology for Studying Terrorism

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Social Networking

Part of the book series: Intelligent Systems Reference Library ((ISRL,volume 65))

Abstract

This chapter aims to bring to the reader an overview of the work done since the 9/11 terrorist attack, in the field of Social Network Analysis as a tool for understanding the underlying pattern /dynamics of terrorism and terrorist networks. SNA is particularly suitable for analyzing terrorist networks as it takes relationships into account rather than merely attributes, which are difficult to obtain for covert networks. Using graph theoretic methods and measures and open source data it has been possible to map terrorist networks and examine roles of different actors, as well as identify groups and structures within the network. The methodology is illustrated by reviewing two case studies: the 9/11 terrorist network study by Krebs, that used data from a single terrorist attack, and a study by Basu that used data from about 200 terrorist incidents in India to create a network of terrorist organizations for predictive purposes.

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Authors and Affiliations

  1. CSIR-National Institute of Science Technology and Development Studies, and Dr. K.S. Krishnan Marg, Pusa Gate, New Delhi, 110012, India

    Aparna Basu

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  1. Aparna Basu
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Correspondence to Aparna Basu .

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Editors and Affiliations

  1. Gandhi Institute for Technological Advancement, Bhubaneswar, Orissa, India

    Mrutyunjaya Panda

  2. Department of Systems Engineering, Ajou University, Yeongtong-gu, Korea, Republic of (South Korea)

    Satchidananda Dehuri

  3. Department of Industrial Engineering, Ajou University, Yeongtong-gu, Korea, Republic of (South Korea)

    Gi-Nam Wang

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Basu, A. (2014). Social Network Analysis: A Methodology for Studying Terrorism. In: Panda, M., Dehuri, S., Wang, GN. (eds) Social Networking. Intelligent Systems Reference Library, vol 65. Springer, Cham. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-05164-2_9

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  • DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-319-05164-2_9

  • Publisher Name: Springer, Cham

  • Print ISBN: 978-3-319-05163-5

  • Online ISBN: 978-3-319-05164-2

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