Driven to Death: Psychological and Social Aspects of Suicide Terrorism
"WithDriven to Death, Ariel Merari, who has studied terrorism for more than thirty years, offers a crucial advance in our understanding of the causal mechanisms behind suicide missions thanks to groundbreaking research on a sample of incarcerated Palestinian would-be suicide bombers... In this sense, overall the book is successful in providing a more adequate articulation of our view of the phenomenon. It forms a very important basis for new empirical research on (suicide) terrorism, which can be successful only if it is inspired by a genuine multidisciplinary perspective." --EuropeanJournal of Social Sciences"In 'Driven to Death,' Ariel Merari brings together insights accumulated over a more-than-40-year career as one of the world's top academic experts on terrorism and its suicide variety. Overall, Mr. Merari's "Driven to Death" is highly recommended as an insightful treatment of suicide terrorism and the factors that drive it." -- Joshua Sinai,The Washington Times"No one has studied suicide terrorists longer than psychologist Ariel Merari, who has had the advantage of working in Israel during three decades in which suicide terrorism has been all too common.  It is impossible to summarize the rich evidence and insight in this book... Every chapter puts the reader in touch with the perspective of an author with unmatched experience in studying suicide terrorism... there can be no doubt that future research on suicide terrorism will build on this book." -- Clark McCauley and Sophia Moskalenko,Terrorism and Political Violence"The author, a clinical psychologist, is one of the world's preeminent experts on suicide terrorism, and a long-time adviser to Israeli governments on these issues. In this important book, the author discusses the psychological, cultural and political factors that drive individuals to intentionally kill themselves in order to kill others on behalf of their political or religious cause. In the case of Palestinian suicide bombers, the author's findings are based on empirical data gathered by a  team of Israeli researchers (including Dr. Anat Berko), who interviewed Palestinian prisoners who had 'failed' to carry out their suicide attacks. The result was a first-hand assessment of the personality characteristics and motivation of such suicide bombers." -- Joshua Sinai's Top 150 Books on Terrorism and Counter-terrorism article inPerspectives on Terrorism