Project overview
Existing scholarship has worked hard to refute a causal link between neurodivergence and criminality. Yet, there remains an over-representation of neurodivergent persons within the criminal justice system (CJS). Neurodivergent individuals are more likely to be ‘misunderstood or misperceived by other people’ including criminal justice practitioners (Mitchell, Sheppard and Cassidy 2021, p.1). This study narrows the focus to one of the most sensitive areas of criminal justice: counter-terrorism. The recent Shawcross Review on the UK Prevent Strategy found that ‘a significant number’ of cases referred to Channel involved ‘complex needs [including] young people on the autistic spectrum’ (Shawcross 2023, para 4.96). Since 2016, neurodivergence features in almost one third of convicted juvenile terrorism cases in England and Wales. When isolated to extreme right-wing offenders, the proportion rises to 45 per cent (Rose and Vale 2023). Such cases have prompted a burgeoning literature to explore how behaviours associated with, for example, autism and ADHD, might contextualise the vulnerability and risk factors of children being drawn into violent extremism. However, comparatively little scholarly attention has been paid to how the intersecting factors of youth and neurodivergence are navigated in counter-terrorism responses within the CJS. Drawing on interviews with policing and legal practitioners, and court transcripts, this study explores how the CJS constructs, understands, and responds to the vulnerabilities, needs, and risks related to neurodivergent children’s engagement in terrorism and violent extremism. In doing so, we aim to address a crucial and timely gap in research and policy at the nexus of neurodivergence, youth justice, and counter-terrorism.
