Suicide that “makes sense” – the mechanism of suicide terrorism

Abstract

Suicide should be considered one of the most drastic ways of solving life problems by an individual, and today it is increasingly becoming an effective tool for terrorists. Statistics show an increase in the number of terrorist operations, in which the intended effect is the bomber’s suicide, and the number of victims is also growing. The research problem posed in the article is: “How does the need to make sense of the surrounding reality foster the motivation of suicide terrorists?”. The hypothesis formulated for the analysis is as follows: “Suicide is the sense-making factor around which most potential terrorist-suicides organize their lives. The factors conducive to forming an attitude of readiness to commit suicide are part of a culture that glorifies suicide, giving it new meanings, attractive to the individual’s personal and social identity”. The statistics and literature concerning the issue of suicides, especially those of a terrorist nature, are subject to analysis. According to the authors of the article, suicide committed by a terrorist is not an effect of loss of will to live, helplessness, or depression, but it is a factor that generates important existential senses motivating to act. For that reason, the popularity of terrorist suicide operations and the effectiveness of organizations applying terror as a tool to fight for their goals are increasing.