Computational Social Sciences in Dealing with Terrorism


    Since 9/11, the need to understand the terrorist has become a central element in our nation’s ability to deal with the new realities that we face.  Questions about our “adversaries” abound.  What kinds of things are they likely to do next?  What motivates them to do these things?  Can they be dissuaded and, if so, how?  How do their organizations function and can they be disabled?  Can our cultures peacefully coexist or a cultural war inevitable? What effects would various near-term and long-term policy options under consideration have on these individuals and organizations and on the societies that support them?
    Given these things, some groups in the U.S. government are asking if the kinds of capabilities addressed by the computational social sciences community have anything to offer the nation.  Can this community’s tools be used to help us predict an action, to deter an attack, or to understand “them” better?  Do these tools have a life beyond academia – can they prove useful in operational settings?


Rick Craft
Sandia National Laboratories
rlcraft@sandia.gov