Episode Overview

Title: Terrorism: A (Self) Love Story
Podcast: LSE: Public lectures and events
Date: October 27, 2011
Speaker: Professor Arie Kruglanski, University of Maryland

In this provocative lecture, Professor Arie Kruglanski—a renowned psychologist specializing in the study of terrorism—explores the psychological underpinnings of terrorism. Centering his thesis on the quest for significance (“amour propre” or self-love in the eyes of others), he traces how powerful social, psychological, and ideological forces transform ordinary individuals into terrorists and, crucially, how those same forces can promote de-radicalization. Using vivid examples, memorable quotes, and a warm, often gently humorous tone, Kruglanski argues that terrorism is less about pathology or poverty and more about a deeply human need: the desire to matter.

Key Discussion Points & Insights

1. Amour Propre: The Essence of Terrorism’s Motivation

• Kruglanski distinguishes between two forms of self-love:
  • Amour propre: Self-love based on how one is seen by others; needing to “matter.”
  • Love of self: Concerned with self-preservation and comfort.
• Central Thesis: Acts of terrorism stem from the quest for personal significance within one’s social sphere, not love for victims, but from an existential need “to count, to be recognized, to matter.”
• Notably, he draws on Jean-Jacques Rousseau’s concept of “amour propre.”

  “The kind of love I’m talking about is what Jean Jacques Rousseau…called self love, or in French, ‘amour propre.’ …It’s the need to count, to be recognized, to matter.” (05:01, Prof. Kruglanski)

2. What Terrorism Is—And Isn’t

• Terrorism is NOT:
  • A psychopathology: “No, terrorists aren’t crazy, even if their behavior appears to be deviant or extreme.” (08:19)
  • The product of poverty, political oppression, or lack of education—none are necessary and sufficient causes.
• Terrorism is:
  • The outcome of a goal-driven process, rooted in cultural, ideological, and social frameworks.
  • A cottage industry of research with “more conferences on terrorism than terrorists” (07:45), which he jokes is “not a bad thing—because our findings are much less explosive.”

3. The Comprehensive Theory: The Quest for Significance Model

• Three Triggers of the Significance Quest (18:10):

  1. Significance loss (humiliation, loss of loved ones, social stigma)
     • E.g., Chechen widows, Muslims in Europe, Palestinian suicide bombers motivated by stigma (divorce, infertility, etc.).

     “A woman accused of extramarital relations became a suicide bomber. A boy diagnosed HIV positive became a suicide bomber.” (23:44)

  2. Threat of future loss
     • E.g., Japanese Kamikaze: fear of “potential humiliation” enough to impel participation (24:29).

     “The threat of potential humiliation…was enough to impel them to volunteer.” (24:57)

  3. Opportunity for great gain
     • Martyrdom, historic recognition, or local heroism (Ramzi Yusuf, Osama Bin Laden, Timothy McVeigh).

• The Role of Ideology:

  • Path from wounded self to radical action involves:
    1. Goal is awakened (loss/threat/opportunity);
    2. Search for means leads naturally to group identity;
    3. Group ideology provides justification (“terrorism-justifying ideology”);
    4. Empowerment and obligation follow—from “noblesse oblige” to sacrifice.

    “Without ideology, the quest of significance would not result in violence…the ideology provides justification of violence as a means to attain the goal.” (34:44–35:21)

4. Empirical Evidence for the Model

• Survey and Experimental Data:
  • Loss of significance (personal failure) predicts stronger collectivist identification (group/nation/religion), which then increases support for violence. (38:08—41:40)
  • Collectivistic mindsets decrease fear of death (evidenced via self-report and implicit joystick task experiments). (43:20)
  • Identification with collectivist groups correlates with higher support for political violence. (46:00+)
  • Sexual guilt induced in religious men increases support for martyrdom. (54:18)
• Key Table:
  • Collectivism (vs. individualism) and various manipulations (failure/success, pronoun use, exposure to certain images) show consistent shifts in attitudes linked to violence and martyrdom.

5. When Significance Doesn’t Lead to Terror—The Role of Ideological Framing

• Pro-social, tolerant ideologies redirect the quest for significance into benevolent channels.
  • Mortality salience (“terror management theory”): Christians and Muslims primed with benevolent verses reverse their attitudes toward “the enemy.” (58:39+)

    “It’s not the quest for significance per se that promotes violence, but it’s the conjunction of the quest for significance with…a terrorism-justifying ideology.” (57:09) “Rousseau…anticipated this as well. …The way individual seek to satisfy their amour propre would depend on what opportunities for recognition, their social institutions…encourage and permit.” (58:39)

6. Deradicalization: To Hell and Back

• The model can also explain leaving terrorism behind:
  • Reducing perceived effectiveness/morality of violence (e.g., exposure to new, tolerant ideologies; religious conversions in prison; dialogue with clerics).

    “During the first month after I was incarcerated, I spent all my time systematically reading up on the Gospels…Thanks to his grace, I underwent a profound and sincere conversion.” (61:42, former ETA member)

• Empirical Cases:
  • Successful deradicalizations in Egypt, Algeria, Sri Lanka (through prison programs, dialogue, vocational training).
    • “The greater their positive attitude change toward vocational rehabilitation, the greater the decrease in support for armed struggle.” (63:24)
  • Restoration of significance by non-violent means: family, career, personal well-being.

    “Shit man, I better get myself alive because time is running out.” (Basque ETA member, 63:08)

7. Conclusions and Major Takeaways

• The drive for significance is a double-edged sword:
  • Can yield both the “nadir of human potentialities” and “the greatest science, greatest art, and harmonious inspiring human relations.”
• The responsibility of psychology is to help societies cultivate the latter, not the former.

Notable Quotes & Memorable Moments

• On the Core Thesis:

  “What terrorists are doing, they're doing out of love. Bizarre, yet in a sense, true…self-love in the eyes of others.”
  (03:55, Prof. Kruglanski)

• On Misconceptions:

  “No, terrorists aren’t crazy, even if their behavior appears to be deviant or extreme.” (08:19)

• On the Group Dynamic:

  “Once you become, in your own mind, a group member rather than an individual, it has two effects. One is you feel empowered… but it also carries obligations. Noblesse oblige…” (36:50)

• Personal Story – Tamil Tiger:

  “Then I came to a stage where I had no love for myself. I was ready to give myself fully, even to destroy myself in order to destroy another person.” (32:05, former Black Tamil Tiger)

• On the Model’s Flexibility:

  “It’s not the quest for significance per se that promotes violence, but…it’s the conjunction…with a terrorism-justifying ideology…” (57:09)

• On Dehumanization:

  “That enemy is condemned to death…combined with this ideology is dehumanization, delegitimation of the enemy…rats and dogs and monkeys and…cockroaches…” (72:01)

Audience Q&A Highlights

Defining Terrorism

• Q (65:24): What’s your definition of “terrorism”?
• A (66:04): “Terrorism intellectually could be very easily defined as the use of fear in order to make political gains…But in the United Nations, many nations object because that would implicate them as terrorists…State terrorism…is a real possibility.”

On Falsifiability and Universality

• Q (68:15): Is your “quest for significance” theory too all-encompassing?
• A (69:20): “If we found personal failure is totally unrelated to support for violence…that would falsify the theory.” It’s not unique to terrorism, “but terrorism is a risky behavior…for that you need a very powerful justification.”
• Memorable aside: “There is a superhero movement in the United States where people are wearing superhero costumes and doing good works for the community…because their beliefs suggest…this is going to lend them significance.” (70:00)

On the Role of the Enemy and Dehumanization

• Q (71:09): How do terrorists choose their targets?
• A (72:01): “The ideology identifies a specific enemy…this enemy is condemned to death” and is dehumanized.

On Sacrifice and Rewards

• Q (79:31): On Hamas “altruism”—is it about family or significance?
• A (80:33): “I would beg to disagree…Sacrificing yourself for your family…bestows upon you a sense of great heroism and great significance.”

Timestamps for Important Segments

• Intro & Speaker Bio: 00:00–03:55
• Self-love & the psychology of terrorism: 03:55–12:00
• What terrorism is/is not: 08:00–13:30
• Comprehensive Theory: The Quest for Significance: 13:30–39:00
• Empirical Evidence & Studies: 39:00–54:00
• Role of Ideology—Violence vs. Benevolence: 54:00–58:40
• Deradicalization and Real-world Examples: 58:40–66:00
• Q&A—Definitions and Extensions: 65:00–82:00

Final Thoughts

Professor Kruglanski’s lecture is a compelling invitation to look beyond surface explanations of terrorism, to appreciate the deeply human drivers that can, when harnessed by destructive ideologies, lead to acts of violence and self-sacrifice. But this quest for significance, he argues, is also the wellspring for humanity’s greatest accomplishments. The role of psychology is to guide individuals and societies toward channels where significance breeds creativity, compassion, and connection, rather than terror.

“The quest for significance, Rousseau's amour proper…is a thoroughly human passion… But it makes us human both for better and for worse... Psychology's role is to guide society toward the latter.” (64:32, Prof. Kruglanski)