ISIS in Iraq

Reviews / Votes

I was most impressed by the years of rolling surveys, structured by cutting-edge social science theory and insight, to support the bookas central argument on the sense of personal and collective significance that ISIS initially afforded Sunni Arabs in the aftermath of America's intervention in Iraq and then squandered through brutal intolerance. The focus on Iraq as the cradle of this violent and dynamic transnational movement, and on local folk in search of meaning and certainty in their lives as opposed to more current journalistic preoccupation with foreign volunteers and the role of ideology, is key to making this book the best empirical work that I have seen on the rise and demise of ISIS. * Scott Atran, Emeritus research director, CNRS-France; co-founder Arris International and Centre for the Resolution of Intractable Conflict, University of Oxford * ISIS in Iraq provides a unique and insightful analysis of the critical relationship between ISIS and the Iraqi public-what Mao famously termed 'the fish in the sea.' Using a rich and diverse array of data gleaned from surveys, focus groups, and interviews with former ISIS fighters, the authors incisively explain the dynamics of ISIS's ascent to power, its governance of the population and territory of significant parts of two existing countries, and the group's ultimate defeat. * Bruce Hoffman, Georgetown University and author of Inside Terrorism * The authors provide a unique perspective on the rise and fall of ISIS: that of the Iraqis who watched, participated, or simply survived the experience. The exceptional research presented in this book will help readers better understand the dynamics of ISIS' relative and temporary success, and what the future might bring for the people of Iong-suffering Iraq. * Craig Whiteside, Naval War College, Co-author of The ISIS Reader * I was most impressed by the years of rolling surveys, structured by cutting-edge social science theory and insight, to support the book's central argument on the sense of personal and collective significance that ISIS initially afforded Sunni Arabs in the aftermath of America's intervention in Iraq and then squandered through brutal intolerance. The focus on Iraq as the cradle of this violent and dynamic transnational movement, and on local folk in search of meaning and certainty in their lives as opposed to more current journalistic preoccupation with foreign volunteers and the role of ideology, is key to making this book the best empirical work that I have seen on the rise and demise of ISIS. * Scott Atran, Emeritus research director, CNRS-France; co-founder Arris International and Centre for the Resolution of Intractable Conflict, University of Oxford * Leading scholars on the study of terrorism: Arie Kruglanski, Karl Kaltenthaler, Munqith Dagher, Ian McCulloh and Michele Gelfand explore the psychosocial factors prompting the support and eventual opposition toward ISIS in Iraq. The book offers insights into how groups used violence to achieve their political goals basing their analyses on public opinion data, focus groups, and in-depth interviews with front line soldiers and senior personnel. This comprehensive study integrates research from sociology, psychology, political science, and terrorism studies to explain ISIS's genesis, rise, and demise. * Mia Bloom, Georgia State University *