New Research by Morgan Burcher and Dr Chad Whelan Analyses Social Network Analysis as a Tool for Understanding and Disrupting Crime and Terror Networks
Research by Deakin PhD Candidate Morgan Burcher and Dr Chad Whelan critically examines the extent to which social network analysis (SNA) can act as a valuable tool in understanding and disrupting crime and terror networks (or ‘dark’ networks). The article focuses specifically on the problem of ‘fuzzy boundaries’, that is, knowing which actors to include and exclude in assessments of dark networks. SNA is applied to the groups responsible for the 7 July 2005 London bombings and the 21 July 2005 attempted London bombings. The article concludes that while SNA is a valuable tool for understanding crime and terror groups, the age-old problem of fuzzy boundaries can have a profound impact on the analysis of small dynamic networks. Click here to access the article.