Biases and prejudices of terrorists

The data in the table were obtained as a result of personal interviews with fighters, integrated and processed by Social Transformation Group in Jan, 2020.

In the survey took part 260 persons (including 247 man and 13 women with age between 24 and 46 years): 88 members of Taliban and its supporters (21 men from Badakhshan, 37 men from Faryab, 14 men from Herat, and 16 men from Nangarhār provinces of Afghanistan), 36 current and former members of Islamic State and its supporters (2 men from Kazakhstan, 4 men and 1 women from Kyrgyzstan, 9 men and 4 women from Russia, 4 men from Turkmenistan, 3 men from Egypt, 4 men from Libya, and 5 men from Syria), 44 members of al-Qaeda and its supporters (34 men and 2 women from Syria and 8 men from Yemen), and 92 current and former members of L/DNR and its supporters (61 men and 6 women from Donetsk, 21 men from Lugansk oblast, and 4 men from Russia).

All respondents answered the question: do you, your comrades or relatives, now or in the recent past, believe in the following theories? Not everybody answered to all questions.

Within the communities surveyed, there is a marked difference between separate groups. In particular, groups of Taliban from different provinces of Afghanistan - Faryab, Nangarhar, Herat and Badakhshan, different al-Qa'ida groups, civilian and military personnel of the illegal L/DPR armed groups from Lugansk and Donetsk regions, as well as the militants from Central Asian countries (Kyrgyzstan, Turkmenistan, Kazakhstan) and Arab countries (Egypt, Libya, Syria) demonstrate different attitudes. It is not possible to measure this difference quantitatively in this study because of the small sample capacity.

Social desirability is clearly manifested in the answers. Some individual respondents may not have been aware of the particular theories discussed in the questions, but did not show this. Usually, most likely the Taliban are unaware of torsion fields, bio-fields and structured water. Some other phenomena they obviously know, but do not want to show their knowledge because these phenomena are condemned by their communities. Astrology, sorcery or divinations are example of this. In both cases, the proportion of refusals to respond is increasing.

Cases in which, according to the researcher opinion, the respondents hid the lack of knowledge, marked by (*); and in which they hid the presence of knowledge, following the opinion of the community – by (**).