Research Launch on Examining the Intersection between Gaming and Violent Extremism
The United Nations Office of Counter-Terrorism (UNOCT) convened a high-level event to launch its new research report titled ‘Examining the Intersection between Gaming and Violent Extremism’. Commissioned by UNOCT’s UN Counter-Terrorism Centre (UNCCT), the report addresses the issue of exploitation of gaming spaces by terrorists and violent extremists and potential vulnerabilities to radicalisation among gaming communities. The report also sets out the potential for the use of gaming to prevent and/or counter violent extremism (PCVE).
The launch event gathered representatives from the Extremism and Gaming Research Network (EGRN - which UNOCT recently joined as a member), the Global Internet Forum to Counter Terrorism, RUSI Europe, Moonshot, Fair Play Alliance, Take This, as well as distinguished speakers from the academic community, experts from the gaming industry, and themselves.
The study on ‘Examining the Intersection between Gaming and Violent Extremism’ was launched in 2021 and led by Dr. Amarnath Amarasingam, Assistant Professor, Queen’s University and Linda Schlegel, Founding Member of the Extremism and Gaming Research Network (EGRN), utilizing a mixed methods approach, including expert consultations and focus groups with gamers.