Horizon: 7/7 Bombers - A Psychological Investigation

Synopsis: No researcher has been able to come up with any psychological trait that is common to suicide bombers. To understand their motivation, it is essential to look at the circumstances in a person’s life and group dynamics, not individual psychology. According to psychologist Andrew Silke, we act differently when we are part of a group; our thoughts, opinions and actions become more exaggerated. It follows that a group of men resenting society at large can develop a common religious collective identity, egging each other on into greater extremism. Each man enters a crowded tube train, rubbing shoulders with the innocent travellers that he is about to kill. But to the bombers, their targets have become dehumanised. This film presents a chilling psychological autopsy, piecing together the mental state of the 7 July bombers on their final, fateful journey. How has Britain produced these home-grown killers? And how can it be prevented from happening again?
Series: Horizon, Series
Language: English
Country: Great Britain
Year of release: 2007
Year of production: 2006
Subjects: Psychology
Keywords: criminology; psychological investigation; social psychology; terrorism; group dynamics; suicide bombers

Name: BBC Active Video for Learning - now BBC Learning
Contact: Carolina Fernandez Jeremy Wilcox (CF - for educational enquiries JW - channel sales manager)
Email: BBCStudiosLearning@bbc.com
Web: https://www.bbcstudioslearning.com/ External site opens in new window
Phone: +44 (0) 20 8433 1009
Address: BBC Studios Limited
Television Centre
101 Wood Lane
London
W12 7FA
UK
Notes: The BBC Active company has now been absorbed within BBC Learning, a division of BBC Studios. It was originally a joint venture between BBC Worldwide and Pearson Education. Formerly known as ‘BBC Worldwide Learning Studies’ and before that as ‘Videos for Education & Training’

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