Islamist terror and Muslim identity 1 Running head: ISLAMIST TERROR AND MUSLIM IDENTITY Effects of Islamist Terror in a Muslim student sample: Evidence from Turkey in the wake of the November 2003 attacks

In November 2003 Islamist extremists attacked various sites in Istanbul. The fact that the terrorists were Turkish citizens posed a threat to the identity of Turkish Muslims, who firmly reject terrorism. Using a Turkish student sample, this study examines how the categorization of Turkish terrorists as Muslims, or as members of their specific religious sect, impacts Turkish religious identity. Changes in the categorization of terrorists increased or decreased the religious identification depending on whether Turks focused on their identity as Muslims or as members of a specific Muslim denomination. However, regardless of the strength of their identification, an association with Islamist terrorism increased the ambivalence that Turks felt toward their religious identities. The discussion focuses on the benefits and potential hazards of various identity management strategies that a Muslim society may employ in the face of Muslim extremists proclaiming to act in the name of Islam. (146 words)