ABSTRACT
Introduction David Rapoport’s “The Four Waves of Modern Terrorism” is one of the most important pieces ever written in the vast literature on terrorism (Rapoport 2004). What Rapoport did in his classic study was take the complex phenomenon of terrorism and put it in a historical context that not only explained different periods of international terrorism, but also set forth theories and concepts that may be used to attempt to anticipate the future of terrorism. That is no easy task. There haven’t been many assessments and articles written about Rapoport’s “Four Waves” theory, although this volume initiates a discourse about his important thesis (see Rasler and Thompson, Chapter 1, this volume). Despite the numbers of scholars, policymakers, and others who have joined the field of terrorism studies after the 9/11 attacks, there does not appear to be a great deal of interest in the history of terrorism. In today’s instant access and informationoverload society, we are inundated with analyses of current affairs but pay scant attention to what we may learn from what has transpired in the past. Rapoport’s vision of “waves” of terrorism and, more specifically, of four distinct waves of international terrorism since the late nineteenth century provides us with a wealth of ideas and concepts that can be analyzed and debated by historians, political scientists, and others interested in this global, endless phenomenon. One of the intriguing questions that his classic study raises is how long will the current wave, the Religious Wave, last, and what, if anything, will replace it. This chapter focuses on the prospects for a Fifth Wave of terrorism and explores the impact that wave may have upon governments and societies around the world.
