Before ultimately disengaging from violent extremism, desisting from crime or deradicalizing, nearly half of a sample of U.S. extremists committed multiple ideologically motivated criminal offenses, suggesting that the risk of recidivism among extremists is high but not inevitable. In a first-of-its-kind effort, START researchers collected information on 300 U.S. extremists who distanced themselves from violent extremism after their participation in ideologically motivated illegal activities. The study highlights the barriers to exiting violent extremism, as well as those factors that helped individuals exit extremist groups. The new dataset, Profiles of Individual Radicalization in the United States-Desistance, Disengagement, and Deradicalization (PIRUS-D3), will be released later this year.
Read the "Profiles of Individual Radicalization in the United States—Desistance, Disengagement, and Deradicalization (PIRUS-D3)" research brief.