Autor*innen
Mirko Allwinn, Sonja King, Sina Tultschinetski, Thomas Görgen
Organisation/Institut
BKA
Fachgebiet
Forschungsstelle Terrorismus Extremismus
Kontakt E-Mail
mirko.allwinn@bka.bund.de
Einsendeart
Ersteinsendung des Projekts
Projektstand
Abgeschlossen
Projektbeginn
01/03/2022
Projektende
31/10/2024
Forschungseinrichtung(en)
Forschungsverbund – divers (inkl. Unis, wie etwa MOTRA)
Publikationsformate
peer-reviewd
Drittmittelförderung
Nein
Zentraler Phänomenbezug
Übergreifend: Radikalisierung – Extremismus und/oder Terrorismus
Arbeitshypothese(n)
– To describe how warning behaviors can present themselves in the digital space.
– To gain knowledge about whether the content published by potential perpetrators on the internet alone, without further operational steps taken by police and intelligence services, can be sufficient to determine their risk potential with regard to serious targeted violence.
Phänomenbereich
Phänomenübergreifend
Forschungsmethodik
Qualitatives Forschungsdesign
Zentralfokus
(primär) Person
Erhebungsverfahren
- Erhebung in der virtuellen Welt
Auswertungsverfahren
- Deskriptivanalyse
- Inhaltsanalyse
- Fallanalyse
Forschungsbefunde
Some perpetrators of serious targeted violence publish self-testimonies in the period leading up to their attack, expressing their intention to commit a violent act. This is especially true for so-called „fame seeking mass shooters.“ This single case study examines whether such materials offer opportunities for threat assessment. For this purpose, publicly available documents of the online activities of an American rampage killer were examined on a large scale for the presence of any warning behaviors using Meloy’s et al. (2012) warning behavior typology. The material included posts that had been published on YouTube, Twitter, and a Columbine fan forum long before the crime. Furthermore, there were self-testimonies in the form of audio files and scanned diary pages that he had uploaded immediately before the shooting. Our analyses show that seven out of eight warning behaviors were clearly identifiable from these materials. The potential for making such perpetrator documents usable for threat mitigation is discussed.
Praktische Umsetzung
Public Significance Statement: The single case study of a fame-seeking mass murderer shows that warning behaviors according to the warning behavior typology repeatedly appeared in the perpetrator’s self-testimonies published online. In such expressive cases, risk assessment is possible and opens up opportunities for preventing serious targeted acts of violence. Public online communication of concern should be assessed with the help of artificial intelligence using well-founded risk instruments, taking the legal framework into account.
Zitation des Projekts
Allwinn, M., King, S., Tultschinetski, S., & Görgen, T. (2025). Preattack warning behaviors in the digital space: A case study of a fame-seeking rampage shooter. Journal of Threat Assessment and Management, 12(3), 178–196. https://doi.org/10.1037/tam0000240
Quellenangabe projektbezogener Publikation
https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2025-39205-001
Verlinkung zum Projekt:
https://psycnet.apa.org/record/2025-39205-001