National approaches to prevent terrorism, extremism, and radicalisation have changed considerably over the last decades. Previous studies mapping these changes have primarily relied on empirical analyses of formal policy and political processes. This case-study of Sweden takes an alternative route, and analyses a dataset of 1405 Swedish newspaper articles (1985–2019) using a new institutional theory and social movement theory framework. Therethrough, the paper is able to provide new insights into the emergence and development of an institutional issue field concerned with the prevention of terrorism, extremism, and radicalisation. More specifically, the paper highlights the unstable, fragmented, dynamic and contested character of the field’s development. Frames containing the problems and solutions considered most important during each of the field’s five stages are identified, and the subsequent institutional and organisational consequences are discussed. The paper also considers how terror attacks and other extremism-related events impact the institutionalisation and alternation of dominant frames, and identifies the translation and development of an inclusive vocabulary as pivotal to mobilising a broad and diverse set of actors to co-produce preventive efforts. 

Radicalization has emerged as a dominant idea for understanding processes that lead to extremist beliefs and behavior. As societal efforts to counter extremism have become increasingly decentralized, local policymakers are being confronted with the task of making sense of radicalization. Departing from neo-institutional theory, this paper explores how the idea of radicalization has been materialized in 60 Scandinavian (Denmark, Norway and Sweden) municipal policies that share the explicit aim of countering extremism. Most research on how radicalization has been conceptualized in policy focuses on the international and national levels. Instead, this paper provides a first large number analysis of how radicalization has been understood at the local level. A content analysis of the policies highlights the different definitions, explanatory factors and theories, models and checklists utilized. Findings show the considerable variance between municipal translations of radicalization. In some cases, the processual properties usually attributed to radicalization are contested as radicalization is portrayed as a mere outcome. A total of 66 different explanatory factors for radicalization are noticed by the municipalities, transforming most forms of deviant social and cultural statuses, psychological conditions and ideological positions to possible explanatory factors. Although the municipalities to a certain degree utilize the same labels for popular theories, models and checklists, this paper demonstrates that the content varies as they are transferred between contexts. The paper explains how and why such local variance occurs and which institutional elements that constrains translations of radicalization.

Despite the growing importance of local action to counter violent extremism (CVE), empirical research on the local organization and management of CVE is scarce, especially regarding public administrators’ strategic work to translate policies and recommendations into frontline practice. Based mainly on ethnographic data and departing from new institutional theory, the paper refines our understanding of the symbolic, material, and relational work used to translate a diverse flow of ideas into concrete action in diverse institutional settings. Due to the institutional complexity, the cultural skill of the local CVE coordinator is identified as pivotal to successfully legitimizing and implementing CVE efforts.