Violent Extremism in America: Interviews with Former Extremists and Their Families on Radicalization and Deradicalization
This RAND report draws on semistructured interviews with 32 former extremists and family members—24 white supremacists and eight Islamic extremists—to understand how people enter, participate in, and exit ideological extremist organizations. Exposure to propaganda through the internet, music, and literature appeared in over two-thirds of the sample, but the entry path differed by movement: most white supremacists actively sought out participation, while three of the Islamic extremists were formally recruited top-down. Of the 26 who exited, 22 cited the role of someone intervening with cultural exposure, emotional support, or financial and domestic stability, alongside systemic factors like unemployment and the need for affordable mental health care. The authors recommend embedding the voices of people with lived extremist experience into future research and prevention and deradicalization practice.