Sample cognitive map
This cognitive map visualizes a decision-making process identified from interviews with a prominent leader of the Muslim Brotherhood (MB). It contains three main components: beliefs, connections between beliefs, and decisions. Beliefs are represented by boxes containing direct quotes. Connections between beliefs are represented by arrows. Decisions are contained by dark boxes that have no outgoing arrows. The map contains two decisions that address 1- engagement in nonviolent dissent and 2- rejection of violent alternatives. Quotes were obtained from interviews in Arabic. Arrows were identified from linguistic connectors, such as “because,” “therefore,” or “if… then.“
Cognitive maps of violent and nonviolent dissidents
The following cognitive maps visualize the reasoning processes of 27 violent and nonviolent dissidents from Egypt and Germany. The nonviolent dissidents from Egypt include leaders and followers of the Muslim Brotherhood. The nonviolent dissidents from Germany were affiliated with the German Socialist Student Union. The violent dissidents from Germany belonged to the Baader Meinhof group, later generations of the Red Army Faction, and Bewegung 2. Juni. The violent dissidents from Egypt belonged to al-Jihad and al-Jama'at al Islamiyya. More information about these groups is described in Chapter 3 of Whether to Kill. More information about the individuals and the conduct of interviews is presented in Chapter 2.
The cognitive maps contain belief classes that were abstracted from direct quotes contained by interviews. Examples of quotes for each belief class are provided here. The abstraction of direct quotes into belief classes and, ultimately, coding schemes is explained in: Stephanie Dornschneider (2019). Analyzing ethnographic interviews: Three studies on terrorism and nonviolent resistance. International Political Science Review, 0192512119884091. [article] This is an example of a cognitive map containing belief classes:
The individual maps can be viewed below. All data are available as csv files here. The representation and analysis of cognitive maps as excel spreadsheets is explained in: Stephanie Dornschneider and Nick Henderson (2016). A computational model of cognitive maps: Analyzing violent and nonviolent activity in Egypt and Germany. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 60(2), 368-399. [article]
1_nonviolent_muslim_brother.pdf
2_nonviolent_muslim_brother.pdf
3_nonviolent_muslim_brother.pdf
4_nonviolent_muslim_brother_leader.pdf
5_nonviolent_muslim_brother.pdf
6_nonviolent_muslim_brother_leader.pdf
7_nonviolent_muslim_brother_leader.pdf
8_nonviolent_muslim_brother_leader.pdf
9_nonviolent_german_socialist_student_union_leader.pdf
10_nonviolent_german_rote_zelle_member.pdf
11_nonviolent_german_protest_participant.pdf
12_nonviolent_german_socialist_student_union__leader.pdf
13_nonviolent_german_socialist_student_union_leader.pdf
14_nonviolent_german_kommune_1_member.pdf
16_violent_jama_islamiya_leader.pdf
18_violent_jama_islamiya_member.pdf
19_violent_jama_islamiya_member.pdf
20_violent_jama_islamiya_founder.pdf
21_violent_jama_islamiya_member.pdf
Cognitive maps of nonviolent dissidents and individuals refraining from dissent
This dataset (.xlsx) contains 121 cognitive maps of participants and non-participants in the Arab Spring in Egypt and Morocco. Information about the analysis of the excel spreadsheets is available here. Information about the construction of cognitive maps from direct speech is provided here. Individual maps are listed below. The coding scheme including quotes from ethnographic interviews in Egypt and Morocco is forthcoming.