Literature review

Domestic Terrorism on National Security Policies: The Role of Lone-Wolf Actors in Shaping Counter-terrorism Strategies Author’s Name The Institutional Affiliation Course Number and Name Instructor Name Assignment Due Date Introduction Lone wolf terrorism has become a significant threat to a nation's national stability and public safety in the changing face of global security (Spaaij, 2011). However, lone-wolf terrorists are not part of terrorist networks and challenge conventional security paradigms. The thorough analysis of lone wolf terrorism demands an analysis that forgoes the traditional intelligence and counter-terrorism frameworks and urges a reexamination of plans to avert lone threats. In this literature review, the paper focuses on mapping out how lone-wolf terrorists have affected or helped shape and recalibrate national security policies and critically analyses core texts that examine behavioural patterns, historical developments, and cyber dynamics of lone-wolf terrorism. The paper magnifies the perspectives to highlight the need for adaptive, dimensionally specific counter-terrorism measures that address the set of problems that an attacker operates in isolation. Literature Review Hamm and Spaaij (2017) evaluate the historical trajectory of lone wolf terrorism, specifically how lone wolf terrorists act as a catalyst to the security protocols and the ethical dilemmas that come with prevention measures such as the FBI sting operations. The research illustrated the history of lone-wolf terrorism from 1940–2016, revealing how these threats have evolved and the way the danger has become deeply embedded in US national security thinking. The research magnifies the behavioral and operational profiles of lone wolf terrorists in each of the five ideological spectrums: far-right extremism, jihadism, and less common ideologies such as black nationalism and left-wing attacks. Hamm and Spaaij (2017) advance this analysis by examining the sociopolitical consequences of lone-wolf terrorism, focusing on how lone-wolf incidents shift such elements of public perception and policy. Researchers argued that these actors redesign security strategies and fundamentally transform societal norms and political discourse on civil liberties and security. Considering the counter-terrorism concerns, Hamm and Spaaij (2017) discussed the justification and ethical issues of FBI sting operations, highlighting two case studies that illustrate how sting operations have been used to effectuate change in security paradigms and public policy. These case studies reveal a troublesome side of counter-terrorism: the successful sting operation against specific attacks at the cost of entrapment and concern about targeting vulnerable people. Hence, lone wolf activity elucidated this impact on law enforcement tactics and legislative action. However, their research is limited to American-centric cases, which blocks its focus on grasping the global phenomenon of lone-wolf terrorism. Spaaij (2011) explored loWolves'es' disparate motivational frameworks and strategic operations and developed a series of tailored policy interventions to confront the unpredictable threat posed by lone wolves. Hence, lone wolf terrorism ma...