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PhD Opportunity – The Dynamics Of Learning And Communication In Transnational Militant Groups
Applications are invited for a 3 year PhD studentship in the Centre for Research and Evidence on Security Threats (CREST), based in Politics, Philosophy and Religion at Lancaster University. The studentship will be supervised by Professor Kim Knott, Dr Sarah Marsden, and Dr Ben Lee, and will begin in October 2018.
Project description
This PhD will examine how transnational militant groups tailor and change the ideological features of their communications to try and appeal to different constituencies. By developing a comparative analysis of communication and mobilisation efforts directed at different language and ethnic groups, and by looking at how these change over time, the project will explore the following questions: (1) how do transnational militant groups interpret or learn whether and how their communication efforts are effective; (2) what influences shifts in the ideological features of their communications; (3) how do they tailor their communications for different constituencies and how do these relate to broader social, ideological, and cultural discourses; (4) and, what are the implications of these issues for state responses to transnational militant groups’ communication efforts. Drawing on established theories of learning and cross-cultural communication, and relying on primary data, the project will develop an understanding of how transnational militant groups adapt and change their communications and what these processes reveal about whether and how they learn.
You will join a growing group of academics, postdocs, and PhDs engaged in projects examining how ideological and contextual factors impact threats and threat actors. As part of that group, you will be expected to contribute to meetings, present findings at academic conferences, and publish findings in academic journals. You will also be a member of the Centre for Research and Evidence on Security Threats (CREST) and be encouraged to engage with relevant stakeholders in the security and intelligence agencies, helping them understand the research and its relevance to their practice and policy.
More information: https://crestresearch.ac.uk/