THE RELATIONSHIP BETWEEN NEW SOCIAL MOVEMENT THEORY AND TERRORISM STUDIES: THE ROLE OF LEADERSHIP, MEMBERSHIP, IDEOLOGY AND GENDER

This article demonstrates the relationship between new social movement theory and terrorism studies. The revolutionary dimension of new social movements can be correlated to terrorist groups. This article also uses new social movement theory to develop a fuller understanding of the leadership, membership, personal ideology and gender within a new social movement; these then can be used to follow the development of a politically violent group. This article uses the example of the American movement and its by-product—the Weather Underground.