Ukrainian Studies on Terrorism: Contemporary Overview and Thematic Classification

Authors

Lesia Horodenko, The University of MannheimFollow
Yevhen Tsymbalenko, The University of MannheimFollow

Author Biography

Lesia Horodenko, Dr. Sc. in Social Communications, Professor at the University of Mannheim (Institute for Media and Communication Studies) and a member of the project “Responsible Terrorism Coverage – Part 2” at the Mannheim Centre for European Social Research (MZES), Universität Mannheim, 68131 Mannheim, Germany. Her research interests focus on new media, social networks, strategic communication, communication technologies, and media coverage of terrorism. She also explores propaganda, information warfare, information operations, media transformations, and digital communication on the internet and social media. She has authored over 80 scientific publications, including monographs, chapters in collective monographs, and peer-reviewed journal articles

Yevhen Tsymbalenko, PhD in Social Communications, Associate Professor, researcher at the University of Mannheim. Dr. Tsymbalenko defended his PhD dissertation, titled “Informatization of Social Communications: Scientific Concepts, Legal Components, and Sectoral Structure,” in 2013 at Taras Shevchenko National University of Kyiv, Ukraine. In 2015, he qualified as an Associate Professor. His scientific interests encompass transformations in media communications, internet and media safety, media literacy, digital journalism, and distance education. He has published over 50 articles in scientific journals. He has teaching experience in Poland (Adam Mickiewicz University and Jan Długosz University in Częstochowa), Hungary (Central European University), and the United Kingdom (Bath Spa University). He also has extensive experience in writing and implementing Erasmus+ and DAAD projects.

DOI

https://doi.org/10.5038/1944-0472.18.4.2509

Subject Area Keywords

Europe and EU, Human security, Terrorism / counterterrorism

Abstract

This article presents the first systematic and reproducible map of Ukrainian academic scholarship on terrorism (2000–2024). It addresses three questions: what directions the field has developed, which methods prevail across periods and disciplines, and where the gaps lie. The central argument is that clarifying the boundary between media terrorism—amplification via media logics—and information terrorism—manipulative information operations—reorients the field under conditions of hybrid warfare. Methods: systematic search of national repositories and journals; mixed-methods content analysis with iterative thematic coding and periodization (pre-2014; 2014–2021; post-2022). Corpus: n=896 publications. Results: a post-2014 surge and a post-2022 consolidation around hybrid warfare strategies, information operations, and media/information terrorism; legal and conceptual work persists, whereas comparative and quantitative designs remain scarce. The study advances portable classification and identifies underexamined areas (policy evaluation, cross-country comparison, cyber-linked modalities), providing a roadmap for future research and policy.

Recommended Citation

Horodenko, Lesia and Tsymbalenko, Yevhen. "Ukrainian Studies on Terrorism: Contemporary Overview and Thematic Classification." Journal of Strategic Security 18, no. 4 (2025) : 239-261.
DOI: https://doi.org/10.5038/1944-0472.18.4.2509
Available at: https://digitalcommons.usf.edu/jss/vol18/iss4/16