Motivations for Terrorism in Canada and Possible Implications for Policy

Abstract

Terrorists are not a monolithic group and are therefore not all motivated to act for the same reasons or because of the same factors. This research paper aims to discover what motivates current Islamist terrorism from a Canadian perspective, using case studies of three Canadian based terrorists: John Maguire, Damian Clairmont, and Michael Zehaf-Bibeau. These individuals were radicalized into an extremist way of thinking and either left to join terrorist organizations overseas as foreign fighters, or committed acts of terror at home in Canada. Previous research has outlined several typologies associated with different characteristics and motivators of individuals who engage in terrorism. The case studies in this paper will be assessed based on these typologies as well as other possible motivations for terrorist action, namely the foreign occupation of a state or territory, religious aspects associated with extremism, and the psychological and personal factors that may interplay with an individual being predisposed to joining such a group. Lastly policy recommendations and points of consideration for the Canadian government will be assessed based on the findings obtained through the case studies.