Oil terrorism-militancy link: Mediating role of moral disengagement in emergency and crisis management

Abstract

The controversial issues of terrorism and militancy have generated contemporary interests and different interpretations have emerged on how to combat and manage these dangerous events. This study widens understanding of moral disengagement mechanism application in the perpetuation of inhumanities within the context of oil terrorist and militant behaviors. The research findings and model are explicit on how people form moral evaluations of agents who are forced to make morally relevant decisions over times in context of crisis situations. Quite crucially, understanding the context of terrorism and militancy provides policymakers, emergency and crisis managers better analysis and response to such events. The research fundamental purpose was to investigate the mediating role of moral disengagement on delinquency of oil terrorism and militancy; and considered implications for emergency and crisis management practices. The study found that situational-induced crises such as oil terrorism and militancy were sufficient to account for an individual's misdeeds and unethical or inhumane decisions made under frustration and agitation may be perceived as less indicative of one's fundamental character. Findings suggest that more repugnant delinquencies could have been committed in the name of justice than in the name of injustice, avenues for future research. In context, the result of the moral disengagement scale shows that morality of delinquency (oil terrorism and militancy) is accomplished by cognitively redefining the morality of such acts. The main finding is that people in resistance movements are rational actors making rational choices. The authors argue that theorists, policymakers, and practitioners must give meaningful attention to understanding the multidimensional nature of emergency, crisis and disaster management for better strength of synthesis between theory and practice. The research is concluded by thorough examination of the implication and limitations for future research and practice.