This paper explores the construction of ethnic identity in the first generation of Balkan Muslim immigrants now living in the Chicago metropolitan area, with the aim of showing the intricacy of global events (civil wars in the homeland and war on terror in the host society) and local contexts (meaning-making occurring during the interviews).…

Four experiments examined 3 types of violations of coherence criteria in risk assessments of a terrorist attack. First, the requirement that extensionally equivalent descriptions be assigned the same probability (i.e., additivity) was violated. Unpacking descriptions of an attack into subtypes led to an increase in assessed risk. Second,…

This study examined the impact of terrorism on adolescents, who may be resolving developmental issues regarding their vulnerability to death. Approximately 4 months after the September 11th attacks, a survey was given to 973 Upper Midwest adolescents and teachers. Quantitative analyses indicated that adolescents (especially girls) were frightened…

We evaluate the argument that Islamist terrorist attacks represent a distinctive "4th wave" of transnational terrorism that has supplanted Leftist terrorism. Drawing on ITERATE data for 1968-2003, the annual count of Leftist attacks has declined since the end of the Cold War while Islamist attacks have persisted and spiked upward in 2002-03.…

Despite the increasingly dangerous world where trauma and loss are common, relatively few studies have explored traumatic grief in children. The 1998 American Embassy bombing in Nairobi, Kenya, provided an unfortunate opportunity to examine this topic. This report describes findings in 156 children who knew someone killed in the incident, assessed…

The authors believe that children need to feel safe--they need the illusion of safety--so that they can develop in a healthy way. But it is an "illusion" because in reality safety is never guaranteed for anyone. At times, traumatic events disrupt the safe environments that people have created. Janoff-Buhlman (1992) describes the "shattering of…

The University of Colorado's Ward Churchill is but the latest in a long line of professors whose volatile statements have created controversy for themselves and their universities. Specific personnel matters in the case have been meticulously addressed in Boulder, but several larger questions have been curiously neglected. One might well ask, for…

This article deals with texts that effectively raise issues related to 9/11 for secondary students, as discussed by several teachers. Kevin J. Collins from St. Thomas Aquinas High School says, "Elephant," Gus Van Sant's exploration of a Columbine-like tragedy, underscores the current generation's attempt to define the meaning of events in…

There is increased interest by parents in communicating with their children about political violence. However, limited attention in the scholarly literature has focused on parent-child communication about war and terrorism. In response, the purpose of this study is to assess, within their respective ecological contexts, American and Northern Irish…

Research in Israel has shown a high level of non-democratic, and even anti-democratic, attitudes among Israeli high-school students. Similar findings in the adult population indicate that this is not a "childhood disorder" that evaporates with age, but something which could pose a threat to Israel's young and fragile democracy. The…

The questions of whether international terrorism could be controlled only through waging war, what institutions could be enlisted in the service of creating sustainable global peace, and could there be viable measures taken to undercut potential sources of global terror are questions posed in this paper. It does not offer complete answers to these…

As a child psychologist based at New York University in Manhattan, Dr. Robin Goodman is well-placed to understand the myriad ways children have been affected by the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks, and the many strategies they have found to cope or to avoid dealing with the trauma. This article presents an interview with Dr. Goodman in which…

Asserting that no campus, from those located in large urban settings to institutions nestled in small rural environments, is immune to being a potential target of domestic or international terrorism, this publication offers information and resources beneficial to presidents, chancellors, and their leadership teams as they review both prevention…

Describes how, despite the growing budget deficit, Congress directed a record $2 billion to college projects in 2003, many of them dealing with security and bioterrorism. Includes data tables on the earmarks. (EV)

Notes that Lois Lowry's novel "The Giver," with its powerful writing, themes, and issues, provides an introduction to the best in young adult literature for students who might have had few (or no) prior experiences with excellent young adult literature. Discusses how students in an adolescent literature methods course responded to the…