The feasibility and utility of the Terrorist Radicalization Assessment Protocol (TRAP-18) : a review and recommendations

Allely, CS; Wicks, SJ

Abstract

The ability to accurately predict the risk of an individual committing an act of targeted violence is likely to be impossible given the low base rate of these acts (Goodwill & Meloy, 2019). Nevertheless, prevention is possible if there is a focus on fact-based behaviors, and threat management is in place. The Terrorist Radicalization Assessment Protocol (TRAP-18; Meloy et al., 2015; Meloy & Gill, 2016; Meloy, Habermeyer, & Guldimann, 2015; Meloy, 2017) is a collection of 18 behavior-based warning signs for terror incidents. There are eight proximal characteristics and ten distal characteristics. The aim of this review was to identify studies which have utilized the TRAP-18 either prospectively (operational use) or retroactively or studies which have investigated the validity and reliability of the TRAP-18. A total of 17 relevant papers were identified in the review including six case studies and eleven empirical papers.

• Journal Article Type: Article
• Acceptance Date: Feb 15, 2022
• Publication Date: 2022-12
• Deposit Date: Feb 16, 2022
• Publicly Available Date: Feb 16, 2022
• Journal: Journal of Threat Assessment and Management
• Print ISSN: 2169-4842
• Electronic ISSN: 2169-4850
• Publisher: American Psychological Association
• Peer Reviewed: Peer Reviewed
• Volume: 9
• Issue: 4
• Pages: 218-259
• Publisher URL: https://psycnet.apa.org/buy/2022-51960-001
• Related Public URLs: http://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/tam/index.aspx
• Additional Information: Access Information : ©American Psychological Association, 2022. This paper is not the copy of record and may not exactly replicate the authoritative document published in the APA journal. The final article will be available, upon publication, at: http://www.apa.org/pubs/journals/tam/index.aspx