ABSTRACT
The purpose of this chapter is to provide an overview of the central principles, actors, and instruments of efforts to promote disengagement from violent extremism in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden and to identify strengths and weaknesses that might inform and inspire the efforts of a broader set of countries. As elaborated below, Scandinavian efforts, and thus this chapter, focus on disengagement from violent extremist groups and networks, not deradicalization, e.g., revising and moderating extremist ideas. The inclination to target behavior rather than beliefs and ideology is evident across time and from efforts to promote exit from different forms of violent extremism in Denmark, Norway, and Sweden. This aligns with general liberal democratic values – as long as you do not break the law you should be free to think what you like. But it also reflects the strong Scandinavian institutional tradition for social crime prevention work embodied in networks and collaboration structures like the Danish SSP, the Norwegian SLT, and the Swedish SSPF.1 In light of the preexistence of these mechanisms and the opportunity to leverage economic, social, and general educational services to incentivize pro-social and law-abiding behavior, it is hardly surprising that the Scandinavian countries leaned towards disengagement rather than trying to establish ideological and religious counseling and reeducation services to attempt to deradicalize violent extremists.
