Prevention-Oriented Analysis of Antisemitic Crime
Antisemitic crimes and attacks in Germany have surged following the Hamas terrorist attack on Israel in October 2023. To date, there has been a lack of empirical research to explain, and thus prevent, antisemitic crimes, particularly regarding secondary prevention (focusing on at-risk groups) and tertiary prevention. In response to these issues, the collaborative project PAAK aims to generate robust empirical findings on antisemitic crimes and offenders during the period between 2022 and 2025 and to derive actionable recommendations for targeted prevention measures.
Sub-project 1: Manifestations, Configurations, and Circumstances of Antisemitic Crimes Over Time
The sub-project led by Ruhr University Bochum examines various manifestations of antisemitic offenses, the circumstances surrounding them, and the characteristics of the perpetrators. For the empirical analysis, data generated via records from police and judicial authorities, data collections from civil society organizations, and victim surveys are processed and statistically analyzed. The aim of this empirical analysis is to identify distinct types of offenses and connected characteristics of perpetrators, serving as a foundation for developing recommendations for situational and secondary prevention of antisemitic crime. The findings will be discussed with the project partner from the Technical University of Berlin in workshops involving experts on crime prevention as well as stakeholders from civil society and government. They will also be presented at academic and practice-oriented conferences and published in relevant specialized journals.
The sub-project led by the Technical University of Berlin aims to analyze the factors contributing to individual criminal behavior within the realm of antisemitic crime. To this end, this initiative empirically investigates the socio-demographic data and biographies of antisemitic offenders through the triangulation of various data sources: public prosecutor investigation files, case files from tertiary prevention efforts, and biographical interviews with incarcerated offenders. The goal of this empirical analysis is to identify different perpetrator types and configurations of risk factors. The project then identifies potential starting points for secondary and tertiary prevention measures on the basis of these findings. The sub-project employs a multi-method approach, combining qualitative methods from biographical research with quantitative file analyses. The results will be discussed thoroughly with practitioners in the field of extremism prevention through workshops and presentations at relevant professional conferences.
