Efforts to prevent and address violent extremism have been a central focus for NGOs, institutes, and agencies operating outside of academia and government. These organizations, such as the Radicalisation Awareness Network (RAN), often operate on behalf of local governments and play a crucial role in shaping policies, programs, and networks aimed at tackling the issue. Despite their central position in managing trends and developments, their experiences and knowledge are relatively underrepresented in academic discussions. This gap represents a missed opportunity to leverage experiences and knowledge by combining scholarly understanding with practical insights from the frontlines of extremism prevention.

This Research Topic aims to reflect perspectives from the full spectrum of actors in violent extremism prevention, including governmental agencies, NGOs, and academic experts. We anticipate that integrating the field-based knowledge of non-academic organizations into the scholarly narrative will foster collaboration and enhance the synergy between practice and theory in combatting violent extremism. We also hope to explore how mental health care professionals, psychiatrists, and psychological approaches can contribute to both the prevention and the treatment of violent extremism at community and policy levels. In doing so, we take a specific inter- and transdisciplinary approach integrating knowledge from various disciplines and fields, including non-academic stakeholders.

The main objectives for our Research Topic include exploring recent interpretations of extremism, analyzing the role of ideology, as well as mental health, in both understanding and addressing extremist behaviors, and assessing the impact of diverse approaches across different groups. Additionally, the goal is to gather perspectives from different regional contexts to highlight culturally and contextually sensitive approaches.

To gather further insights, we welcome various article types addressing, but not limited to, the following themes:

• the role of ideology in contemporary forms of extremism
• the role of mental health and psychiatric assessment in understanding vulnerabilities to radicalization and violent extremism
• effective prevention strategies implemented by non-academic actors
• comparative analyses of prevention and mitigation strategies across different regions
• collaborative efforts between research institutes, NGOs, and governmental agencies
• case studies on successful interventions in extremism prevention at all levels ranging from community to national, including those that integrate psychiatric care and trauma-informed approaches.

We encourage submissions from institutes across various countries and those working with diverse groups to ensure a comprehensive understanding of the prevention and management of violent extremism.

Are you interested in contributing a manuscript to this Research Topic?

Collaborative Approaches to Addressing Violent Extremism in Practice