Unintended Negative Outcomes of Counter Terrorism Policing: Procedural (in) Justice and Perceived Risk of Recruitment into Terrorism

Since the terrorist attacks on 9/11 in New York and on 7/7 in London, many researchers have documented how local communities experience counter-terrorism measures. Evidence on these experiences has raised concerns that these measures might be counter-productive, increasing rather than reducing the risks of radicalisation and terrorism. Using an experimental vignette design, this study tests how the nature of counter-terrorism practices affects people’s perceptions of the risks of recruitment into terrorism. A national representative sample of Muslims in the United Kingdom was randomly assigned to one of four experimental conditions showing (a) procedurally just street stops, (b) procedurally unjust street stops, (c) procedurally just counter-terrorism raid, or (d) procedurally unjust counter-terrorism raid. After reading the scenarios, participants completed a short questionnaire on the risk of terrorism …