stochastic terrorism

American  

[stuh-kas-tik ter-uh-riz-uhm] / stəˈkæs tɪk ˈtɛr əˌrɪz əm /

noun

1. the public demonization of a person or group resulting in the incitement of a violent act, which is statistically probable but whose specifics cannot be predicted.

   The lone-wolf attack was apparently influenced by the rhetoric of stochastic terrorism.

---

Etymology

Origin of stochastic terrorism

First recorded in 2010–15

Example Sentences

Sander Van Der Linden, a professor of social psychology at the University of Cambridge, uses the term "stochastic terrorism" to describe events like this.

From BBC • Apr. 25, 2026

At its core, stochastic terrorism exploits one of our strongest and most complicated emotions: disgust.

From Scientific American • Nov. 5, 2022

But such a view misses the point of how stochastic terrorism works, scholars have argued.

From New York Times • Nov. 3, 2022

And in terms of social media, stochastic terrorism also gets us out of the lone wolf framework.

From Slate • Jan. 19, 2021

Dahlia Lithwick: I want to start by asking you about this phrase stochastic terrorism because you’ve been saying it and saying it.

From Slate • Jan. 19, 2021