The Causes and Effects of Terrorism: a Comprehensive Analysis

Terrorim is the use of violent means to achieve political or social and religious gain effects global citizens. Terrororism can affect individuals and nations across the globe in numerous different ways. The mental and economic effect are some of the most severe impacts of terrorist attacks. Terrorism can cause permanent and devestating economic and mental impacts throughout the world. Individual victims receive extensive mental disorders and negative emotions. A collective effect on communities are through the economy. Terror attacks effects foreign investment, stock and other markets, tourism as well as other sources of income. It also has been shown that less developed nations and markets are more affected than developed ones.

Terror attacks typically result in numerous mental health issues with varying severity for affected victims. In fact it has been provern that terrorism has more mental impacts than disesase and injuiry. Mental health issues are often the most severe effects when it comes to violence. Physical and other types of damage can be repaired, but the mental health damages are often more long lasting than others. A recent study showed that there were more mental effects than physical and social. There are 3 types of victimization which can affect mental health. Primary (victim), Secondary (family/friends of victims), Tertiary (observers of conflict). Mental health issues are more impactful on Primary and Secondary, victims and has minimal damage on Tertiary observers. Common emotions and experiences by victims include fear, shock, anxiety, shame, denial, guilt, self-blame, anger, hostility, rage, disempowerment, flashbacks, nightmares, damaged sense of self and identity, disorientation, loss of control and anxiety. PTSD is one of the most commonly diagnosed disorders to victims of terror attacks. Its diagnosis is very controversial because many psychiatrists don’t believe it represents the abuse they went through and it’s often more severe. In a bombing attack in France 39% of people had PTSD after 6 months, and after a further 26 months there was only a 14% drop. In areas with poor mental health facilities could result in permanent mental damage. To secondary and tertiary victims common feelings can be grief, fear and shock. To help victims it is important to offer emotional support, safety and security, shelter, protection and anything else that the victim may need. One of the strongest impacts of terrorism on indiviuals is on the mind and it’s important to support those who are effected.

The economical impact of terrorism can effect entire nations with varying severity. The economic impact of terrorism is often not very obvious and attacks cause ripple effects in the economy. Some direrect economical impacts of terrorism include injuires, loss of life, destruction of property, machines, transport sytems and other economic resources. This includes loss of labor and capital which are fundamental for an economy to run. It is the indirect impact which people aren’t aware of. Terrorism causes market uncertainty, loss of tourism, increased insurance claims and loss of trade and investement. A large scale example of this is 9/11. At the time of 9/11 there was a very severe economic impact. The financial markets shut down and it took two years for them to recover to their original state. It is said to have cost more than 100 billion dollars to restore everything to its natural state. This was economical impact on America which is one of the developed countries in the world. Undeveloped nations have more severe impacts and is more difficult to recover from. Foriegn nations like to conduct business with less terror prone countries and frequent and/or severe terror attacks reduce the amount of trade and foreign investment that countries receive. Because of this decrease in trade these countries are forced to increase prices on their goods to earn money, which most of the time is more harmful to their economy. Terrorsim also impacts trade due to compromisation of trade routes and distribution systems These countries are also faced with a significant rise in security costs and decrease in labor and capital. Tourism also takes a hit when countries have experienced recent terror attacks. Tourists prefer to travel to places where they have heightened chance of safety. After the attacks in Nice, France tourism levels took a 30% decline. This is a fairly large amount, and tourism can often contribute to a large amount of a country's income. When terrorist attacks occur the amount of insurance claims skyrocket which also results in a decline of a nation’s economy. Because of this overall decline in the economy, many markets are affected and also take a decline. However research has shown that over time nations and markets are becoming more resilient to terror attacks and are becoming less and less affected. Trans-national terror attacks, have larger effects because they receive more media attention. Only 13% of terror attacks were trans-national and the other 87% were domestic. This statistic shows us that domestic terror attacks have little impact despite there large numbers compared to trans-national acts. Terrosism can have severe economic impacts in many different ways, and these impacts are often more severe in developing countries.

Terrorism has significant impacts around the world on indiviuals and nations. The mental and economic impacts are often the most severe and can be permanent. Terrorism can cause numerous mental health issues for a range of different people. Entire nations can crumble due to the economical effect of terrorism, but this depends on the nation and the severity of the attack. It is important to put a stop to terrorism because it can have devestating effects (not just mental and economical) on all global citizens and is a threat to global society.