Counter-Radicalisation Policies of the United Kingdom and France: A Comparative Analysis of Strategies
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2025-07-04
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en
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This thesis investigates how the United Kingdom and France conceptualise and respond to jihadist radicalisation through their respective counter-radicalisation efforts. The strategies of the two countries reflect both notable similarities and meaningful differences, despite sharing similar structural traits and dealing with similar security concerns. While both countries point to Islamist extremism as the biggest threat, the UK adopts a preventive security risk frame, framing radicalisation as a pre-terrorist process, identifiable through behavioural indicators and ideological vulnerability. France, on the other hand, employs an identity threat frame, framing radicalisation as a threat to laïcité and national unity, legitimising a state-led ideological enforcement and restrictions on religious expression. Addressing a key research gap in comparative policy analysis, this study moves beyond existing literature by not only comparing policies but also explaining why these national differences exist.
A central argument of this thesis is explained through the conceptual model that links national context to policy outcomes through framing. To determine how jihadist radicalisation is framed and how national contexts influence these frames, the research employs this framework to conduct a a qualitative content analysis of policy documents; UK’s CONTEST and France’s Plan National de Prévention de la Radicalisation. The results show that framing directly informs the counter-radicalisation strategies, and is both shaped by and reflective of deeper institutional trajectories. This research contributes to a more nuanced understanding of counter-radicalisation strategies—offering insights into why policies either diverge or converge—through the lens of historical institutionalism
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Faculteit der Managementwetenschappen