Martin Couture-Rouleau’s father is convinced his son had mental health issues. But doctors at a psychiatric ward deemed him healthy enough to be released into the public.
Researchers say there’s little evidence that mental-health issues cause violent radicalization.
“I think people resort to this hypothesis to perhaps feel better or reduce their uncertainty, because it’s hard to understand why people would die for a cause,” says Jocelyn Bélanger, a psychology professor at the Université du Québec à Montréal.
“We try to demonize the things we can’t grasp.”
He worries that linking terrorism with mental health further stigmatizes people with psychological disorders.
Lorne Dawson, a University of Waterloo psychology professor, says many terrorism cases involve mental health-issues, but they aren’t the cause of the radicalization.
He cites the example of Norwegian nationalist Anders Behring Breivik, who was found to have paranoid schizophrenia and a personality disorder, but was deemed sane enough to realize he had slaughtered scores of people in 2011.
Dawson says those who are drawn to both cults and terrorist groups are often normal.
Among four Calgary men who left for Syria and Iraq in 2012, one was an addict who attempted suicide, one was an accomplished human-resources employee and two were popular, successful students.
“They are not marginalized people, they are not losers. There may be some, but they’re not all. Usually they’re overachievers. They come from very conventional, middle-class homes. They have been captain of the swim team; they have done well in school.”
They are not marginalized people, they are not losers.
He notes that extremist offshoots have existed for centuries — and studies suggest they’re increasing.
“As modernity marches on, there’s a segment of society that feels alienated, doesn’t fit in, can’t handle the change,” says Dawson. “There’s a segment of the society psychologically and socially geared to be drawn to this point of view.”
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