Although a wave of democratization appears to be sweeping the globe, torture persists in more than seventy-five nations. Despite widespread condemnation of torture and the efforts of international and nongovernmental organizations to end it, the "politics of pain" continues in a broad range of social and political systems. This book is one of the first to systematically examine the psychological, cultural, and social origins of torture. It provides profiles of torturers and of those who direct them in their brutal activities. The contributors provide case studies from the past and present, including Somoza's National Guard in Nicaragua and regimes in the Southern Cone of Latin America and in Greece.

Although a wave of democratization appears to be sweeping the globe, torture persists in more than seventy-five nations. Despite widespread condemnation of torture and the efforts of international and nongovernmental organizations to end it, the "politics of pain" continues in a broad range of social and political systems. This book is one of the first to systematically examine the psychological, cultural, and social origins of torture. It provides profiles of torturers and of those who direct them in their brutal activities. The contributors provide case studies from the past and present, including Somoza's National Guard in Nicaragua and regimes in the Southern Cone of Latin America and in Greece.

This major new Handbook synthesises more than two decades of scholarly research, and provides a comprehensive overview of the field of terrorism studies. The content of the Handbook is based on the responses to a questionnaire by nearly 100 experts from more than 20 countries as well as the specific expertise and experience of the volume editor and the various contributors. Together, they guide the reader through the voluminous literature on terrorism, and propose a new consensus definition of terrorism, based on an extensive review of existing conceptualisations. The work also features a large collection of typologies and surveys a wide range of theories of terrorism. Additional chapters survey terrorist databases and provide a guide to available resources on terrorism in libraries and on the Internet. It also includes the most comprehensive World Directory of Extremist, Terrorist and other Organizations associated with Guerrilla Warfare, Political Violence, Protest and Organized- and Cyber-Crime. The Routledge Handbook of Terrorism Research will be an essential work of reference for students and researchers of terrorism and political violence, security studies, criminology, political science and international relations, and of great interest to policymakers and professionals in the field of counter-terrorism.