# Contagion of Terrorism **Entity class:** Research concept **Domain:** Terrorism studies / network science / behavioral diffusion **Maturity:** Developed ## Definition **Contagion of terrorism** names research on whether terrorist events, tactics, publicity, and mobilization raise the probability of later events through imitation, attention, competition, or network transmission. The term can describe event clustering without claiming that terrorism is literally infectious. Analysts test several mechanisms: copycat behavior after highly publicized attacks; tactical diffusion among organizations; recruitment through peer networks; and self-exciting event patterns modeled with [[wiki/Hawkes Process|Hawkes processes]]. Apparent clustering can also reflect shared political conditions, reporting practices, or strategic substitution, so temporal proximity alone is not proof of transmission. ## Relationships - **broader domain:** [[wiki/Counterterrorism|Counterterrorism]]. - **behavioral mechanism:** [[wiki/Behavioral Contagion|Behavioral Contagion]]. - **network formulation:** [[wiki/Radicalization as Social Contagion|Radicalization as Social Contagion]] and [[wiki/Complex Contagion|Complex Contagion]]. - **event model:** [[wiki/Hawkes Process|Hawkes Process]]. - **ethical boundary:** exposure or association does not establish violent intent or criminal conduct. ## Sources / Provenance - [National Institute of Justice — The Role of Social Networks in Facilitating and Preventing Domestic Radicalization](https://nij.ojp.gov/library/publications/role-social-networks-facilitating-and-preventing-domestic-radicalization-what) - [National Library of Medicine — Epidemiological modeling of terrorist networks](https://pmc.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/articles/PMC7299159/)