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Clark McCauley (B.S. Biology, Providence College, 1965; Ph.D. Social Psychology, University of Pennsylvania, 1970) is Research Professor of Psychology at һƷ̽»¨ÂÛ̳. His research interests include stereotypes, group dynamics, and the psychological foundations of ethnic conflict, terrorism, and genocide. He is co-author of Why Not Kill Them All? The Logic and Prevention of Mass Political Murder (2006), co-author of Friction: How Radicalization Happens to Them and Us (2011, second edition 2017), co-author of The Marvel of Martyrdom: The Power of Self-Sacrifice in a Selfish World (2019), co-author of Radicalization to Terrorism: What Everyone Needs to Know (2020), and Founding Editor emeritus of the journal Dynamics of Asymmetric Conflict: Pathways toward Terrorism and Genocide.

Other Research Interests

• What does it mean to essentialize a group, our own or others, and how does essentializing enable killing by category? 
• What is the role of emotions (disgust, humiliation, anger) in intergroup conflict, and what is the relation between interpersonal emotions and intergroup emotions?
• How can polling be used to track variation over time in support for terrorism?
• What are the mechanisms of radicalization that can move normal human beings to terrorism, that is, to killing civilians in intergroup conflict?

Courses

• Social Psychology 208 
• Psychological Measurement and Testing 305
• Ethnic Conflict 358 
• Cognitive Issues in Personality and Social Psychology 398

Selected Publications

Pavloik, T., Moskalenko, S., & McCauley, C. (2021).  Dynamics of Asymmetric Conflict. DOI 10.1080/17467586.2021.1980220.

Leuprecht, C., Skillicorn, D. B. & McCauley, C. (2020).  In Steffanie von Hlatky (ed.), Countering violent extremism and terrorism: Assessing domestic and international strategies, pp. 18-46. Montreal & Kingston, Canada: McGill-Queens University Press.

McCauley, C. (2020). Chapter 6. . In Alex P. Schmid (ed.), Handbook of Terrorism Prevention and Preparedness, pp. 144-172. The Hague, NL: ICCT Press.

McCauley, C. (2020).  In R. J. Sternberg (ed.), Perspectives on hate: How it originates, develops, manifests, and spreads, pp. 43-64. Washington, D.C.: APA Books.

McCauley, C. (2020). The ABC model: Commentary from the perspective of the Two Pyramids model of radicalization. Terrorism and Political Violence. DOI: 10.1080/09546553.2020.1763964.

McCauley, C., & Moskalenko, S. (2016).  Fear and anger elicited by terrorist attack: The power of jujitsu politics. In J. Giordano, S. Rhem, & G. Popp (Eds.), White paper assessing and anticipating threats to US security interests, pp. 68-72. Washington, D.C.: A Strategic Multi-Layer (SMA) Periodic Publication. []

McCauley, C. (2016), What comes after ISIS? A peace proposal. Perspectives on Terrorism, 10(4), 64-68.

McCauley, C., & Moskalenko, S. (2017). Report to the Office of University Programs, Science and Technology Directorate, U.S. Department of Homeland Security. College Park, MD: START. 

Fajmonova, V., Moskalenko, S., & McCauley, C. (2017). Tracking radical opinions in polls of U.S. Muslims. Perspectives on Terrorism, 11(2).

McCauley, C. (2018). Explaining homegrown Western jihadists: The importance of Western foreign policy. International Journal of Conflict and Violence, 12, 1-10. doi: 10.4119/UNIBI/ijcv.643 []

McCauley, Clark and Scheckter, Sarah. (2008) What's Special about U.S. Muslims? The War on Terrorism as Seen by Muslims in the United States, Morocco, Egypt, Pakistan, and Indonesia. Studies in Conflict & Terrorism, 31:11, 973 — 980 [PDF]

McCauley, Clark and Stellar, Jennifer. (2009). U.S. Muslims after 9/11: Poll Trends 2001-2007. Perspectives on Terrorism, 3:3, 35 - 47 [PDF]

McCauley, Clark and Moskalenko, Sophia. (2010). Individual and Group Mechanisms of Radicalization. Current Multi-Disciplinary Perspectives on Root Causes, the Role of Ideology, and Programs for Counter Radicalisation and Disengagement, 82 - 91 [PDF]

Leuprecht, C., Hataley, T., Moskalenko, S., and McCauley, C. (2009). Winning the Battle but Losing the War? Narrative and Counter-Narratives Strategy. Perspectives on Terrorism, 3:2, 25 - 35 [PDF]

McCauley, Clark. (2009). War versus criminal justice in response to terrorism: the losing logic of torture. In W. G.K. Stritzke, S. Lewandowsky, D. Denemark, J. Clare, & F.Morgan (Eds.) Terrorism and Torture: An Interdisciplinary Perspective (pp. 63-85) [PDF]

McCauley, Clark and Scheckter, Sarah (2010) Reactions to the war on terrorism: Origin-group differences in the 2007 Pew poll of U.S. Muslims. [DOC]

McCauley, C. (2024). Mass political murder: What and where is the hate? Advances in Political Psychology. 

McCauley, C. (2024). . Journal for Deradicalization, 38, 211–237.

Moskalenko, S., Freilich, J., Chermak, S., Gruenewald, J., & McCauley, C. (2023). . Dynamics of Asymmetric Conflict, 16(1), 44–69.

Pavlović, T., Moskalenko, S., & McCauley, C. (2022). . Behavioral Sciences of Terrorism and Political Aggression, 16(2), 227–247. 

For a copy of other publications, .