Mind the Gap: Foreign Fighters and their Prospects on the OECD Labour Market

Sammanfattning: The rise of the world’s most gruesome terror organization ISIS has agitated fear across the globe. Simultaneously, it has attracted more than 30 000 recruits from at least 86 different countries, many of whom originate from OECD member states. This dissertation investigates the underlying mechanisms driving people from OECD countries into joining the Islamic State. By cross-country analysis on 34 member states, this paper examines the relationship between foreign fighters and the labour market situation for immigrants by means of macro-level data on foreign recruits and socio-economic indicators. The analysis found a positive and significant correlation between foreign fighters and the participation gap between natives and immigrants, suggesting that deficient integration, poor labour market prospects and relative deprivation serve as determinants of joining ISIS, and that extensive integration policy may serve as a remedy.