A Department of Homeland Security Emeritus Center of Excellence led by the University of Maryland

Right-wing Terrorism


Right-wing Terrorism

Project Title Investigators Project Period
A Multi-Level Approach to the Study of Violent Extremism Gary LaFree, Michael Jensen January, 2018 to December, 2020
Defense Advanced Research Projects Agency SIGMA+ Thomas Guarrieri, Marcus A. Boyd, Steve Sin July, 2018 to April, 2020
Global Terrorism Database (GTD) Acceleration Erin Miller January, 2019 to January, 2020
Global Terrorism Database (GTD) Erin Miller, Gary LaFree, Laura Dugan June, 2001 to January, 2020
The Terrorism and Extremist Violence in the United States (TEVUS) Database Gary LaFree, Brent Smith, Joshua Freilich, Steven Chermak, Erin Miller, William Braniff, Kathleen Smarick March, 2009 to September, 2019
A Comparative Study of Violent Extremism and Gangs Gary LaFree, Scott H. Decker, David C. Pyrooz January, 2015 to March, 2019
Empirical Assessment of Domestic Disengagement and Deradicalization (EAD3) Michael Jensen, Peter Simi, Gina Scott Ligon January, 2015 to December, 2018
Country Reports on Terrorism - Statistical Annex Gary LaFree, Erin Miller May, 2012 to May, 2018
Geospatial and Temporal Patterns of US Terrorism Brent Smith, Kelly Damphousse July, 2012 to December, 2017
Patterns of U.S. Extremist Crime Jeff Gruenewald, Joshua Freilich, Steven Chermak, William Parkin July, 2012 to December, 2017
Empirical Assessment of Domestic Radicalization (EADR) Michael Jensen, Gary LaFree January, 2013 to December, 2016
Recruitment and Radicalization among US Far-Right Terrorists Peter Simi July, 2012 to December, 2015
Massive Online Open Course: Understanding Terrorism and the Terrorist Threat Gary LaFree, William Braniff, Katherine Worboys Izsak January, 2014 to March, 2014
Anatomizing Radiological and Nuclear Non-State Adversaries Gary Ackerman, Jeffrey Bale, R. Karl Rethemeyer June, 2012 to January, 2014
U.S. Policies and Extremist Motivations July, 2012 to December, 2013
Radicalization Clusters? Geographic Concentrations of Violent Extremism and Terrorism in the United States Kathleen Smarick October, 2010 to December, 2011
United States Extremist Crime Database (ECDB), 1990-2010 Joshua Freilich, Roberta Belli, Steven Chermak June, 2008 to October, 2011
Tracking Sympathy and Support of Muslims for Terrorism in the United States Clark McCauley June, 2008 to May, 2011
Patterns of Radicalization in Political Activism Donatella della Porta, Manuela Caiani June, 2008 to December, 2009
Where the Extremes May Touch: The Potential for Collaboration Between Islamist, Right- and Left-Wing Extremists Gary Ackerman, Jeffrey Bale July, 2005 to September, 2009
Creation of a Database of U.S. Extremist Crime, 1990-2005 Joshua Freilich, Steven Chermak June, 2007 to January, 2009
Extremist Crime Database Related Projects Joshua Freilich, Steven Chermak
Project Title Publication Datesort descending START Authors Publication Type
A Reassessment of State-Level Covariates of Militia Groups April 2005 Freilich, Joshua Journal Article
Mismeasuring Militias: Limitations of Advocacy Group Data and of State-Level Studies of Paramilitary Groups March 2006 Freilich, Joshua Journal Article
Review on Ignazi's, Norris' and Carter's New Books on Right Wing Radicalism January 2007 Caiani, Manuela Journal Article
Review of George Michael, The Enemy of My Enemy: The Alarming Convergence of Militant Islam and the Extreme Right March 2007 Bale, Jeffrey Book Review
Politics, Culture, and Political Crime: Covariates of Abortion Clinic Attacks in the United States May 2007 Freilich, Joshua Journal Article
The Impact of State Laws Protecting Abortion Clinics and Reproductive Rights on Crimes against Abortion Providers: Deterrence, Backlash, or Neither? July 2007 Freilich, Joshua Journal Article
The Rise and the Fall of the Extreme Right in Europe: Towards an Explanation? November 2007 Caiani, Manuela Journal Article
Citizen Militias November 2007 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Book Chapter
Book Review of S.A. Wright, Patriots, Politics, and the Oklahoma City Bombing January 2008 Freilich, Joshua Book Review
Surveying State Police Agencies about Domestic Terrorism and Far-Right Extremists February 2008 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Research Brief
An Overview of the Domestic Far-right and its Criminal Activities November 2008 Gruenewald, Jeffrey; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Book Chapter
Online Networks of the Italian and German Extreme Right: An Explorative Study with Social Network Analysis February 2009 Caiani, Manuela Journal Article
Critical Events in the Life Trajectories of Domestic Extremist White Supremacist Groups August 2009 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Preventing Deadly Encounters between Law Enforcement and American Far-rightists October 2009 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Situational Crime Prevention and Non-violent Terrorism: A 'Soft' Approach against Ideologically Motivated Tax-refusal November 2009 Freilich, Joshua; Belli, Roberta Journal Article
Law Enforcement Training and the Domestic Far Right December 2009 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Surveying American State Police Agencies about Lone Wolves, Far-Right Criminality, and Far-Right and Islamic Jihadist Criminal Collaboration January 2010 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
U.S. Polls: Public Opinion and Right‐Wing Extremism April 2010 McCauley, Clark START Reports
Grievance, Social Dominance Orientation, and Authoritarianism in the Choice and Justification of Terror Versus Protest November 2010 Lemieux, Anthony; Asal, Victor Journal Article
American Terrorism and Extremist Crime Data Sources and Selectivity Bias: An Investigation Focusing on Homicide Events Committed by Far Right Extremists November 2011 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
The Organizational Dynamics of Far-Right Hate Groups in the United States: Comparing Violent to Non-Violent Organizations December 2011 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven START Reports
Mobilizing on the Extreme Right: Germany, Italy, and the United States January 2012 della Porta, Donatella; Caiani, Manuela Book
Financial Crime and Political Extremism in the U.S. January 2012 Freilich, Joshua; Belli, Roberta; Chermak, Steven Research Brief
Examining the Relationship between the Presence of Hate Groups and the Presence of Violent Far-Right Perpetrators at the County Level March 2012 Adamczyk, Amy; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William START Reports
Examining the Relationship between General Social Survey (GSS) Measures and Far-Right Ideological Violence: A County-Level Analysis April 2012 Adamczyk, Amy; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William START Reports
Military Experience, Identity Discrepancies, and Far Right Terrorism: An Exploratory Analysis April 2012 Simi, Peter Journal Article
Worst of the bad: Violent white supremacist groups and lethality May 2012 Freilich, Joshua Journal Article
European and American Extreme Right Groups and the Internet November 2012 Caiani, Manuela Book
The Organizational Dynamics of Far-Right Hate Groups in the United States: Comparing Violent to Nonviolent Organizations February 2013 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Distinguishing "Loner" Attacks from Other Domestic Extremist Violence July 2013 Gruenewald, Jeffrey; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Update on Geospatial Patterns of Antecedent Behavior among Perpetrators in the American Terrorism Study (ATS) October 2013 Smith, Brent; Damphousse, Kelly; Roberts, Paxton START Reports
Armed Assault at Los Angeles International Airport (LAX) November 2013 Miller, Erin Fact Sheet
Far-Right Lone Wolf Homicides in the United States November 2013 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Profiles of Individual Radicalization in the United States: Preliminary Findings January 2014 Tinsley, Herbert; Jensen, Michael; James, Patrick Research Brief
Profiles of Individual Radicalization in the United States: An Empirical Assessment of Domestic Radicalization January 2014 Tinsley, Herbert; Jensen, Michael; James, Patrick Project Fact Sheet
How Women Engage Homegrown Terrorism April 2014 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Terrorist Suspect Religious Identity and Public Support for Harsh Interrrogation and Detention Practices April 2014 Piazza, James A. Journal Article
Far-right Violence in the United States: 1990-2013 June 2014 Gruenewald, Jeffrey; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William Fact Sheet
The Relationship Between Hate Groups and Far-Right Ideological Violence June 2014 Adamczyk, Amy; Gruenewald, Jeffrey; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
A Test of Sprinzak's Split Delegitimization Theory of the Life Course of Far-Right Organizational Behavior October 2014 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
The Place of Race in Conservative and Far-Right Movements January 2015 Yates, Elizabeth Journal Article
The Determinants of Domestic Right-Wing Terrorism in the USA: Economic Grievance, Societal Change and Political Resentment March 2015 Piazza, James A. Journal Article
Trauma as a Precursor to Violent Extremism April 2015 Simi, Peter Research Brief
The Influence of External and Internal Correlates on the Organizational Death of Domestic Far-Right Extremist Groups May 2015 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Quantifying and Qualifying Charisma: A Theoretical Framework for Measuring the Presence of Charismatic Authority in Terrorist Groups May 2015 Hofmann, David Journal Article
Financial Crimes Perpetrated by Far-Right Extremists in the United States: 1990-2013 June 2015 Sullivan, Brandon; Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William Research Brief
Leaving the World of Hate: Life-Course Transitions and Self-Change June 2015 Simi, Peter Journal Article
Routine Activities and Right-Wing Extremists: An Empirical Comparison of the Victims of Ideologically Motivated and Non-Ideologically Motivated Homicides Committed by American Far-Rightists August 2015 Freilich, Joshua; Parkin, William Journal Article
Only the Bad Die Young: The Correlates of Organizational Death for Far-Right Extremist Groups December 2015 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Extreme Hatred: Revisiting the Hate Crime and Terrorism Relationship to Determine Whether They Are "Close Cousins" or "Distant Relatives" December 2015 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
A Mixed-Method Analysis of Fatal Attacks on Policy by Far-Right Extremists December 2015 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Organizational-Level Characteristics in Right-Wing Extremist Groups in the United States Over Time February 2016 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Asal, Victor Journal Article
Walking Away: The Disengagement and De-radicalization of a Violent Right-Wing Extremist March 2016 Horgan, John Journal Article
Twenty-Five Years of Ideological Homicide Victimization in the United States of America March 2016 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William START Reports
Victims of Ideological Homicides, 1990-2014 March 2016 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William Research Brief
Commitment to Extremist Ideology: Using Factor Analysis to Move Beyond Binary Measures of Extremism April 2016 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Extreme Hatred: Revisiting the Hate Crime and Terrorism Relationship May 2016 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Research Brief
Opportunity, Group Structure, Temporal Patterns, and Successful Outcomes of Far-Right Terrorism Incidents in the United States June 2016 Smith, Brent; Gruenewald, Jeff Journal Article
“Give Peace a Chance”? Explaining Colombia’s (Failed) Peace Process with the FARC November 2016 Koven, Barnett S. Discussion Point
Criminal Justice & Military Deaths at the Hands of Extremists November 2016 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William Background Report
Recruitment and Radicalization among U.S. Far-Right Terrorists November 2016 Simi, Peter START Reports
Empirical Assessment of Domestic Radicalization (EADR) December 2016 LaFree, Gary; Tinsley, Herbert; Stevenson, John; Jensen, Michael; James, Patrick START Reports
Financial Terror: Financial Crime Schemes Involving Extremists Linked to the American Far Right and al-Qaida and Affiliated Movements January 2017 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Book Chapter
Threats of violent Islamist and far-right extremism: What does the research say? February 2017 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William Discussion Point
Islamist and Far-Right Homicides in the United States: Infographic February 2017 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William Research Brief
Comparing Extremist Perpetrators of Suicide and Non-suicide Attacks in the U.S. March 2017 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William Journal Article
Extremist Violence from the Fatherland to the Homeland: A Comparison of Far-right Homicide in Germany and the United States April 2017 Gruenewald, Jeff; Parkin, William Journal Article
Key concepts to understand violent White supremacy April 2017 Beutel, Alejandro Research Brief
Women in the White Supremacist Movement July 2017 Yates, Elizabeth Book Chapter
Addicted to Hate: Identity Residual among Former White Supremacists August 2017 Simi, Peter Journal Article
Profiles of Radicalization in the United States September 2017 Safer-Lichtenstein, Aaron ; Copland, Erin; LaFree, Gary; Jensen, Michael; James, Patrick Research Brief
Are Honor Killings Unique? A Comparison of Honor Killings, Domestic Violence Homicides, and Hate Homicides by Far-Right Extremists October 2017 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
The Radical Right as Social Movement Organizations January 2018 della Porta, Donatella; Caiani, Manuela Book Chapter
Radical Right Cross-National Links and International Cooperation January 2018 Caiani, Manuela Book Chapter
A Situated Comparison of Suicide and Non-Suicide Terrorist Plots and Homicides in the United States, 1990-2014 September 2018 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William Journal Article
Invisible Empire of Hate: Gender Differences in the Ku Klux Klan's Online Justifications for Violence September 2018 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Profiles of Individual Radicalization in the United States (PIRUS) October 2018 Safer-Lichtenstein, Aaron ; Yates, Elizabeth; LaFree, Gary; Jensen, Michael; James, Patrick Research Brief
Far-Right Fatal Ideological Violence against Religious Institutions and Individuals in the United States: 1990-2018 October 2018 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William Project Fact Sheet
Pathways to Violent Extremism: A Qualitative Comparative Analysis of the US Far-right December 2018 Simi, Peter Journal Article
Radical Right Movement Parties in Europe December 2018 Caiani, Manuela Book
Understanding the Micro-Situational Dynamics of White Supremacist Violence in the United States December 2018 Simi, Peter Journal Article
Patterns of Fatal Extreme-Right Crime in the United States December 2018 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William Journal Article
The Radicalization of the Kanes: Family as a Primary Group Influence? February 2019 James, Patrick Journal Article
Anger from Within: The Role of Emotions in Disengagement from Violent Extremism February 2019 Ligon, Gina Scott; Simi, Peter Journal Article
A Mixed Method Examination of Law Enforcement Investigatory Strategies Used in Jihadi and Far-right Foiled Terrorist Plots Before and After 9/11 February 2019 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Addressing the Myths of Terrorism in America March 2019 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
An Examination of the American Far Right’s Anti-Tax Financial Crimes April 2019 Sullivan, Brandon; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Psychology and Morality of Political Extremists: Evidence from Twitter Language Analysis of Alt-right and Antifa May 2019 Cioffi-Revilla, Claudio Journal Article
The Rise and Endurance of Radical Right Movements September 2019 Caiani, Manuela Journal Article
Countering Domestic Terrorism: Examining the Evolving Threat September 2019 Braniff, William Congressional Testimony
The Radical's Journey: How German Neo-Nazis Voyaged to the Edge and Back October 2019 Kruglanski, Arie Book
An Intervention Analysis of Fatal Far-right Extremist Violence within a Vector-autoregressive Framework December 2019 Gruenewald, Jeff; Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven; Parkin, William Journal Article
Examining the Online Expression of Ideology among Far-Right Extremist Forum Users January 2020 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
Foreign Fighters in Ukraine: Assessing Potential Risks February 2020 Murauskaite, Egle Report
Discursive Turns and Critical Junctures: Debating Citizenship After the Charlie Hebdo Attacks May 2020 della Porta, Donatella Book
Contextualizing Disengagement: How Exit Barriers Shape the Pathways Out of Far-Right Extremism in the United States May 2020 Yates, Elizabeth; Jensen, Michael; James, Patrick Journal Article
Profiles of Individual Radicalization in the United States (PIRUS) May 2020 Yates, Elizabeth; Jensen, Michael; Kane, Sheehan Research Brief
Do White Supremacist Women Adopt Movement Archetypes of Mother, Whore, and Fighter? May 2020 Simi, Peter Journal Article
Measuring the Extent and Nature of Adverse Childhood Experiences (ACE) among Former White Supremacists June 2020 Simi, Peter Journal Article
The Link Between Prior Criminal Record and Violent Political Extremism in the United States June 2020 Safer-Lichtenstein, Aaron ; LaFree, Gary; Jensen, Michael; James, Patrick Book Chapter
Discursive Turns and Critical Junctures: Debating Citizenship after the Charlie Hebdo Attacks June 2020 della Porta, Donatella Book
Biased Hate Crime Perceptions Can Reveal Supremacist Sympathies July 2020 Kruglanski, Arie Journal Article
Triggered by Defeat or Victory? Assessing the Impact of Presidential Election Results on Extreme Right-Wing Mobilization Online August 2020 Freilich, Joshua; Chermak, Steven Journal Article
The Three Percenters: A Look Inside an Anti-Government Militia March 2021 Beutel, Alejandro Report
QAnon Offenders in the United States May 2021 Jensen, Michael; Kane, Sheehan Research Brief
Title Byline
START researcher speaks at Department of Defense forum on extremism in the military Erin Copland
Most extremists radicalized in less than one year, START analysis finds Sara Gavin
START releases new analysis of QAnon offenders in the United States Erin Copland
START research, education and professional training relevant to domestic extremism William Braniff
Institute for Economics and Peace releases 2020 Global Terrorism Index Erin Copland
A Perfect Storm for Far-Right Extremism Arie W. Kruglanski, Karl Kaltenthaler
The RaD portfolio is now on Twitter
START researchers present on international white supremacist movement for State Department Erin Copland
Threats of violent Islamist and far-right extremism: What does the research say? William Parkin, Brent Klein, Jeff Gruenewald, Joshua Freilich, Steven Chermak
Profiles of Individual Radicalization in the United States (PIRUS) data now available Beth Schwartz
New study compares ideologically motivated homicides in United States Jessica Rivinius
Financial crimes perpetrated by far-right extremists
Report finds childhood trauma, history of high-risk behaviors as precursors to violent extremism Samara Tu
Preliminary findings on Profiles of Individual Radicalization in the US
START seeking 2014 Outstanding Article Award nominations Jessica Rivinius
Violent hate crimes offer insights into lone-actor terrorism Jessica Rivinius
New START study examines communities where terrorists lived, planned and prepared
New Book: European and American Extreme Right Groups and the Internet
Far-right Violence in the United States: 1990-2010
Temple Gunman Said Military Experience Drove Him To Hate
Response to mischaracterization of the Hot Spots Report
Masculine honor ideology shapes responses to terrorism Nicholas Munson
START investigator and former TRA recipient publish book on the mobilization of right-wing extremism Samantha Goldman
Urban U.S. counties hot spots of terror, but rural areas are not exempt Jessica Rivinius
New research examines financial crime and political extremism
START Investigators Participate in 2011 American Sociological Association Annual Conference
START Responds to White House Report on Preventing Violent Extremism
Have you seen it yet? START Research Review
START Researchers on Recent Shooting at the Pentagon
START Releases First Research Review
**Far-Right Attacks on U.S. Law Enforcement and Security Guards**
**Background Information: Far-Right Attacks on U.S. Law Enforcement **
START Announces 2009-10 Terrorism Research Awards
START Students Awarded Prizes in Poster Contest
START Expands its Research Brief Series
START Announces Fellowships for 2005-06
START Hosts DHS Faculty/Student Research Teams
Image Title Job Title Institution
Elizabeth Yates

Radicalization and Disengagement (RaD) Researcher, START

 University of Maryland
Erin MIller Erin Miller

GTD Program Manager, START

 University of Maryland
Herbert Tinsley

Analyst, Government Accountability Office
Jeff Gruenewald

Associate Professor and Director of the Terrorism Research Center, University of Arkansas

 University of Arkansas
Joshua Freilich

Professor

 John Jay College of Criminal Justice, City University of New York
Kurt Braddock

Assistant Professor, American University

 American University
Laura Dugan Laura Dugan

Ralph Mershon Professor of Human Security and Professor of Sociology 

 The Ohio State University
Max Erdemandi

Ph.D. Student, Communication Science and Social Cognition

 University of Maryland
Megan Rutter

Junior Researcher, START

 University of Maryland
Peter Simi

Associate Professor, Chapman University

Director, Earl Babbie Research Center

 Chapman University
Rebecca (Becca) Earnhardt

PhD student

Research Associate, Stimson Center

 University of Maryland
Victor Asal

Associate Professor of Political Science and Chair of Public Administration

 University at Albany, State University of New York
Image Abbreviation Title Direct Link
Profiles of Individual Radicalization in the United States (PIRUS)
Subscribe to Related Resources