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Joint statement: Anti-radicalisation strategy lacks evidence base in science

Last updated: 03/09/16 12:37

We are concerned with the implementation of “radicalisation” policies within the UK Prevent strategy, internationally referred to as countering violence extremism. Tools that purport to have a psychology evidence base are being developed and placed under statutory duty while their “science” has not been subjected to proper scientific scrutiny or public critique.

Of particular concern is the Extremism Risk Guidance 22+ (ERG22+) framework that is being used as the basis for assessing risk of “radicalisation” and referral to the Channel programme. More than 500,000 public servants have been placed under a duty to implement the tool and several dozen children have been directly affected, through the courts, based on assessments using the tool. The impact is significant and cannot be emphasised enough.

We endorse the recent statement by the Royal College of Psychiatrists calling for publication of the ERG22+ study. We call on the Home Office to do so and further to invite debate by experts.

All those engaged in academic study should continue to serve the interests of society by remaining faithful to the ethical standards and science of their traditions. Where we play a role cooperatively with government policy, we should hold ourselves to the highest possible standards to ensure that we maintain the independence and transparency of our professions.

 

Signatures 
Signing with institution name is for identification purposes and not for institutional endorsement.

 

  1. Karen Armstrong
  2. Professor Marc Sageman
  3. Professor Noam Chomsky Massachusetts Institute of Technology
  4. Professor Humayun Ansari Royal Holloway, University of London
  5. Professor David Miller University of Bath
  6. Professor Arun Kundnani New York University
  7. Professor Tariq Ramadan University of Oxford
  8. Professor Tim Jacoby University of Manchester
  9. Professor John L Esposito Georgetown University
  10. Professor Catarina Kinnvall Lund University
  11. Professor the Baroness Ruth Lister of Burtersett
  12. Professor Andrew Samuels University of Essex
  13. Professor David Whyte University of Liverpool
  14. Professor Richard Jackson University of Otago
  15. Professor Laleh Khalili School of Oriental and African Studies
  16. Professor Adam Gearey Birkbeck College, University of London
  17. Professor Vian Bakir Bangor University
  18. Professor Ruth Blakeley University of Kent
  19. Professor Robert Gleave University of Exeter
  20. Professor Emeritus Philip G Cerny University of Manchester
  21. Professor Piers Robinson University of Sheffield
  22. Professor Gargi Bhattacharyya University of East London
  23. Professor Vini Lander Edge Hill University
  24. Professor Salman Sayyid University of Leeds
  25. Professor Bill Bowering Birkbeck College, University of London
  26. Professor Aziz Huq University of Chicago
  27. Professor Jenny Hocking Monash University
  28. Professor Eric Herring University of Bristol
  29. Professor Julian Petley Brunel University, London
  30. Professor Yasir Qadhi Rhodes College
  31. Professor Raphael Salkie University of Brighton
  32. Professor Jeremy Keenan Queen Mary University London
  33. Professor Les Back Goldsmiths, University of London
  34. Professor Robert W McChesney University of Illinois
  35. Professor Stellan Vinthagen University of Massachusetts
  36. Professor Susan Condor Loughborough University
  37. Professor Dave Hill Anglia Ruskin University
  38. Professor Edward S Herman University of Pennsylvania
  39. Professor Elizabeth Shakman Hurd Northwestern University
  40. Professor Bernadette Calafell University of Denver
  41. Professor Barbara Harlow University of Texas, Austin
  42. Professor Lara Deeb Scripps College
  43. Professor Phillip Metres John Carroll University
  44. Professor Ramon Grosfoguel University of California, Berkeley
  45. Professor Khaled Beydoun University of Detroit, Mercy
  46. Dr Tarak Barkawi London School of Economics and Political Science
  47. Dr Narzanin Massoumi University of Liverpool
  48. Professor Stephen Reicher University of St Andrews
  49. Dr Leda Blackwood University of Bath
  50. Dr Charles Figley Tulane University, New Orleans
  51. Dr Bob Jeffery Sheffield Hallam University
  52. Dr John Drury University of Sussex
  53. Dr Alice LoCicero The Wright Institute
  54. Dr Emma O’Dwyer Kingston University
  55. Dr Shazad Amin Consultant psychiatrist, National Health Service
  56. Dr Vivian L Vignoles University of Sussex
  57. Dr Derek Summerfield Consultant psychiatrist
  58. Dr Suman Fernando London Metropolitan University
  59. Dr Sushrut Jadhav University College London
  60. Dr Michael Gopfert University of Liverpool
  61. Dr Rukyya Hassan University of Manchester
  62. Dr Huseyin Cakal Keele University
  63. Dr Winnifred Louis University of Queensland
  64. Dr Philip Thomas Author and retired psychiatrist
  65. Dr Lisa Hajjar University of California, Santa Barbara
  66. Dr Nadine El-Enany Birkbeck College, University of London
  67. Dr Charlotte Heath-Kelly University of Warwick
  68. Dr Fahid Qureshi Canterbury Christchurch University
  69. Dr Katy P Sian University of York
  70. Dr Rizwaan Sabir Liverpool John Moores University
  71. Dr Emma L Briant University of Sheffield
  72. Dr Julia Welland University of Warwick
  73. Dr Sadia Habib Goldsmiths, University of London
  74. Dr Anisa Mustafa University of Nottingham
  75. Dr Sarah Marusek Public Interest Investigations and Spinwatch
  76. Dr Monish Bhatia Abertay University
  77. Dr Paul-Francois Tremlett The Open University
  78. Dr Heather Mendick Research consultant
  79. Dr Jo Frankham Liverpool John Moores University
  80. Dr Jane Essex Brunel University, London
  81. Dr Abida Malik University of Nottingham
  82. Dr William Jackson Liverpool John Moores University
  83. Dr Jeffrey A Sluka Massey University, New Zealand
  84. Dr Haitham al-Haddad Independent Scholar
  85. Dr Feyzi Ismail School of Oriental and African Studies
  86. Dr Fuad Ali University of East London
  87. Dr Joseph Darlington Futureworks Media School (UCLan)
  88. Dr Leena Robertson Middlesex University
  89. Dr Steve Hanson Lecturer and writer
  90. Dr Joanna Gilmore University of York
  91. Dr Virinder S Kalra University of Manchester
  92. Dr Jonathan Gilhooly University of Brighton
  93. Dr Mark Carrigan University of Warwick
  94. Dr Francis Farrell Edge Hill University
  95. Dr Tina Managhan Oxford Brookes University
  96. Dr Jeffrey Stevenson Murer University of St Andrews
  97. Dr Tanzil Chowdhury University of Manchester
  98. Dr Muhammad G Khan Ruskin College, Oxford
  99. Dr Shamim Miah University of Huddersfield
  100. Dr Vicky Duckworth Edge Hill University
  101. Dr Louise Purbrick University of Brighton
  102. Dr Emily Wykes University of Nottingham
  103. Dr Rob Smith Birmingham City University
  104. Dr Sivamohan Valluvan University of Manchester
  105. Dr Heather Smith Newcastle University
  106. Dr Patricia McManus University of Brighton
  107. Dr Graham Smith University of Manchester
  108. Dr Caroline Ruddell Brunel University London
  109. Dr Carl Morris University of Central Lancashire
  110. Dr Robin Dunford University of Brighton
  111. Dr Shohini Chaudhuri University of Essex
  112. Dr Necla Acik University of Manchester
  113. Dr Bethan Harries University of Manchester
  114. Dr Laia Becares University of Manchester
  115. Dr Nadia Edmond School of Education
  116. Dr Vicky Margree University of Brighton
  117. Dr Doerthe Rosenow Oxford Brookes University
  118. Dr Lesley Whitworth University of Brighton
  119. Dr Les Levidow Open University
  120. Dr Daniel Burrows University of Brighton
  121. Dr George Tsekouras University of Brighton
  122. Dr Paul Robert Gilbert University of Brighton
  123. Dr Fatima Chrifi Alaoui San Francisco State University
  124. Dr Nicole Tausch University of St Andrews
  125. Dr Kesi Mahendran The Open University
  126. Dr Hugh Middleton University of Nottingham
  127. Dr Abayomi Al-Ameen Cardiff University
  128. Dr Cüneyt Çakirlar Nottingham Trent University
  129. Dr Thomas MacManus Queen Mary University London
  130. Dr Lucy Ford Oxford Brookes University
  131. Asim Qureshi Cage
  132. Yahya Birt University of Leeds
  133. Julie Ward MEP
  134. Trevor MacFarlane Cultural Affairs, European Parliament
  135. Hilary Aked University of Bath
  136. Robin Richardson Insted
  137. Bill Bolloten Education Not Surveillance
  138. Liam McCann University of Lincoln
  139. Phil Edwards Manchester Metropolitan University
  140. Will McGowan University of Liverpool
  141. Catherine Adams Nottingham Trent University
  142. Milly Williamson Brunel University
  143. Gary Riley-Jones Goldsmiths University of London
  144. Dawud Walid Council of American-Islamic Relations, Michigan
  145. Tait Coles Dixons ITT, Bradford
  146. Jennifer Wates Retired policy analyst
  147. Sarah Earnshaw Ludwig Maximilian University of Munich
  148. AbdoolKarim Vakil King’s College London
  149. Haneen al Ghabra University of Denver
  150. Ümit Yıldız Edge Hill University
  151. Saira Weiner Liverpool John Moores University
  152. Maggie Webster Edge Hill University
  153. Karis Campion University of Manchester
  154. Tom Hickey University of Brighton
  155. Anne Mitchell Retired FE deputy principal
  156. Lisa Redlinski College of Arts and Humanities, Brighton
  157. Sam Cutting University of Brighton
  158. Shaykh Abdalhaqq Bewley The Muslim Faculty of Advanced Studies
  159. Dinah Rahman Imperial College London