In the Wake of 9/11
In the Wake of 9/11 explores the emotions of despair, fear, and anger that arose after the terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon in the Autumn of 2001. The authors analyze reactions to the attacks through the lens of terror management theory, an existential psychological model that explains why humans react the way they do to the threat of death and how this reaction influences their post-threat cognition and emotion. The theory provides ways to understand and reduce terrorism's effect and possibly find resolutions to conflicts involving terrorism.
The authors focus primarily on the reaction in the United States to the 9/11 attack, but their model is applicable to all instances of terrorism, and they expand their discussion to include the Israeli-Palestinian conflict. This fascinating book has practical implications and will be an irreplaceable resource for mental health practitioners, researchers, and anyone concerned with the causes and effects of terrorism.
Preface
Acknowledgements
- Terror in America: The Day Our World Changed
- Terror Management Theory: An Evolutionary Existential Account of Human Behavior
- Terror Management Research: Coping With Conscious and Unconscious Death-Related Thoughts
- Terror Management Research: Prejudice and Self-Esteem Striving
- Black Tuesday: The Psychological Impact of 9/11
- Managing the Terror
- The Roots of Islamic Terrorism
- Giving Peace a Chance
- In the Wake of 9/11: Rising Above the Terror
References
Author Index
Subject Index
About the Authors
In this fascinating work, psychologists Pyszczynksi, Solomon, and Greenberg explore the social upheaval that occurred after 9/11 in the context of the work of cultural anthropologist Ernest Becker (The Denial of Death, 1973)…Based in empirical research and numerous studies, this persuasive and provocative book should be in all libraries.
—Choice Magazine
In the Wake of 9/11: The Psychology of Terror is an outstanding work. The authors have been unusually successful in applying rigorous experimental methodology to significant real-world problems that have already been considered amenable to an experimental approach.
—Criminal Justice Review
