Measuring terrorism with the global terrorism index

Abstract Purpose This aim of this chapter is to outline the rationale and methodology behind the development of the Global Terrorism Index (GTI), a composite index which attempts to measure the unobserved latent impact of terrorism across 158 countries covering over 99% of the world’s population. De...

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Bibliographic Details
Published inUnderstanding Terrorism Vol. 22; pp. 97 - 114
Main Authors Hyslop, Daniel, Morgan, Thomas
Format Book Chapter
LanguageEnglish
Published United Kingdom Emerald Group Publishing Limited 21.06.2014
Emerald Publishing Limited
Subjects
Politics
Public Policy & Environmental Management
Terrorist attack
Global Terrorism Index
Global Terrorism Database
quantitative research
Terrorism
measuring terrorism
terrorism trends
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Summary:Abstract Purpose This aim of this chapter is to outline the rationale and methodology behind the development of the Global Terrorism Index (GTI), a composite index which attempts to measure the unobserved latent impact of terrorism across 158 countries covering over 99% of the world’s population. Design methodology/approach The GTI attempts to capture the multidimensional direct impact of terrorist related violence, in terms of its physical effect, as well as emotional wounds and fear, by attributing a single-weighted average national level score. It is based on the Global Terrorism Database (GTD). This chapter also details selection of the indicators, weighting methodology and method of normalisation. Findings The GTI aims to be a reference point from which one can further discuss how researchers and the general public collectively define, interpret and contextualise the social, political and economic impact of terrorism. Research limitations/implication Certain issues related to the data remain intractable (e.g., missing injury data in the GTD and property damage). The chapter also suggests a number of areas in which the basic index design could be expanded upon. Originality/value of the chapter By presenting the GTI the chapter provides a relative measure of terrorism. Its value rests in the possibility to compare the impact of terrorism between countries and scores, analyse trends over the time and assess the aggregate global impact of terrorism.
ISBN:1783508272
9781783508273
ISSN:1572-8323
1572-8323
DOI:10.1108/S1572-8323(2014)0000022010