What should social scientists know about Islamist networks?
1. Islamist networks can be studied with the same concepts, theoretical tools, and methods used to study non-Islamist, non-religious movements. There is no logical reason why Islamic movement research rarely draws on the rich theorizing of social movement studies. Theoretical concepts such as resource mobilization, opportunity structures, cultural frames can be leveraged to explain the origins, dynamics, and decline of Islamist contention (see Quintan Wiktorowicz, The Management of Islamic Activism: Salafis, the Muslim Brotherhood, and State Power in Jordan State University of New York Press, 2001; and Quintan Wiktorowicz edited volume on Islamic Activism: A Social Movement Theory Approach Indiana University Press, Forthcoming 2003). 2. Currently, much of the literature on Islamist violence attributes this violence to the economic, cultural, or political grievances or deprivations suffered by the Islamic world. Consequently, little attention is paid to how Islamist grievances are trans
