The Perils of Deduction: Limitations of Theoretical Models in Terrorism Studies

John Maszka

Systems Research and Behavioral Science, 2018, vol. 35, issue 6, 884-907

Abstract: This article explores the limitations of both systemic and lower‐level theories, as well as the limitations associated with the use of theoretical models in the field of Terrorism Studies. They are useful to a degree, as they allow analysts to parse out various facets of a phenomenon and examine them independently. However, this approach involves a trade‐off, offering a measure of parsimony and greater generalizability at the expense of accuracy. For those who desire more accuracy, their models must be more complex and, therefore, generate less generalizable results. What is more, the deductive process becomes increasingly more difficult as theoretical models increase in complexity. © 2018 John Wiley & Sons, Ltd.

Date: 2018
References: Add references at CitEc
Citations:

Downloads: (external link)
https://doi.org/10.1002/sres.2511

Related works:
This item may be available elsewhere in EconPapers: Search for items with the same title.

Export reference: BibTeX RIS (EndNote, ProCite, RefMan) HTML/Text

Persistent link: https://EconPapers.repec.org/RePEc:bla:srbeha:v:35:y:2018:i:6:p:884-907

Ordering information: This journal article can be ordered from
http://www.blackwell ... bs.asp?ref=1092-7026

Access Statistics for this article

More articles in Systems Research and Behavioral Science from Wiley Blackwell
Bibliographic data for series maintained by Wiley Content Delivery ().