Cut from the same cloth? Lone Actor Terrorists versus Common Homicide Offenders

The term “lone actor” has been applied to a variety of violent individuals, includingjihadists, right-wing extremists, school shooters, and others whose crimes wereideologically motivated and generated much societal impact. It may be argued, however,that such a classification of this rare subset of violent offenders is an artificial one, basedon political perspectives rather than on empirical findings. In this study, we examine andcompare characteristics of European single perpetrators or lone actor terrorists to a largesample of European ‘common’ homicide offenders. Bivariate analysis shows that loneactors are significantly younger, more single, and more educated than homicideoffenders. In terms of event characteristics, however, the two groups differ moresubstantially. Lone actors are more likely to attack ‘strangers’ in public places and to usefirearms, while homicide offenders tend to attack victims they know in private settingsand to use more hands-on methods. These differences may be understood through thenotion of instrumental versus expressive motivations. Our findings question theclassification of lone actors as an entity fundamentally different from our sample of singlehomicide offenders and call for future in-depth assessments of possible differences inhomicidal drive.