How Certain Features of Autism Spectrum Disorder May Provide the Context of Vulnerability to Radicalization towards Lone-actor Terrorism, Violent Extremism and Other Forms of Public Mass Violence
- Clare Allely
- Date
- Tuesday 9 June 2026
- Time
- Location
-
Wijnhaven
Turfmarkt 99
2511 DP The Hague - Room
- 3.48
The research group Terrorism and Political Violence, part of Leiden University’s Institute of Security and Global Affairs (ISGA), invites you to a seminar on Radicalism and Radicalization by Prof.dr. Rik Peels (Vrije Universiteit Amsterdam). Please see below for details and a link to register.
Programme
15.45: Doors open
16.00: Word of welcome by Professor Bart Schuurman
16.05: Presentation by Prof. Clare Allely
16.50: Q&A with the audience
17.00: Drinks reception
About the event
Rather than being the perpetrators of offending, individuals with autism spectrum disorder (ASD) are more likely to be the victim of crime. However, there is nevertheless a small subset of individuals with ASD who do offend. In this presentation I will provide some understanding of how certain features of ASD may provide the context of vulnerability to radicalization towards lone-actor terrorism, violent extremism and other forms of public mass violence. It has been previously highlighted in the literature the role that autistic special interests, fantasy, obsessionality, the need for routine/predictability, social and communication difficulties, cognitive styles, local coherence, systemizing, and sensory processing may play in terrorism pathways and modus operandi. In this presentation I will also introduce the Terrorist Radicalization Assessment Protocol (TRAP-18). The purpose of the TRAP-18 is not to predict acts of lone-actor terrorism rather to prevent them by efficiently and effectively managing risk. The TRAP-18 is a collection of 18 behaviour-based warning signs for terror incidents.
About the speaker
Clare Allely is Professor of Forensic Psychology at the University of Salford in England and Honorary Research Fellow at the University of Glasgow. She is also affiliate member of the Gillberg Neuropsychiatry Centre at University of Gothenburg, Sweden. She is author of the book The Psychology of Extreme Violence: A Case Study Approach to Serial Homicide, Mass Shooting, School Shooting and Lone-actor Terrorism and Autism Spectrum Disorder in the Criminal Justice System: A Guide to Understanding Suspects, Defendants and Offenders with Autism.