Mapping the production of knowledge of cyberterrorism and hacktivism research using an integrated bibliometric and content analysis framework

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dc.contributor.advisorWindle, James
dc.contributor.advisorLynch, Orla
dc.contributor.authorHosford, Kevinen
dc.date.accessioned2024-09-17T11:23:26Z
dc.date.available2024-09-17T11:23:26Z
dc.date.issued2024
dc.date.submitted2024
dc.description.abstractThe proliferation of Internet Communication Technologies (ICT) has prompted scholarly interest in role of ICT in facilitating cybercrime, particularly in the domains of cyberterrorism and hacktivism. Exploration of cyberterrorism and hacktivism has faced challenges stemming from the absence of dedicated platforms, such as academic journals and conferences impeding a consistent research output and hindering collaborative research. In contrast to more established domains like terrorism studies and organised crime studies, the research on cyberterrorism and hacktivism is still in its initial stages within the academic discourse. This doctoral thesis seeks to map the conceptual understandings and production of knowledge surrounding cyberterrorism and hacktivism research throughout a twenty-year period (2000-2020). Employing a modified version of Creswell and Clark's ‘Triangulation Design: Data Transformation Model,’ the research employs bibliometric analysis for a knowledge mapping of the academic domain. Additionally, a quantitative content analysis of definitions pertaining to cyberterrorism and hacktivism sheds light on key issues within the scientific domain. The investigation reveals a dominance of male, single-author publications, primarily originating from the global north, suggesting a potential lack of collaborative trans-national research amongst a backdrop of an array of multi-disciplined parties. The absence of consistent high-impact journal contributions, lack of knowledge cohesion, coupled with an over-reliance towards secondary sources, further hinders the rich and dynamic collection of researchers from achieving a cohesive academic discourse leading to the issue of knowledge fragmentation within academia fields. The analysis of definitions exposes cyberterrorism as predominantly hypothesised, emphasising unspecified actors and potential harms, diverging from conventional notions of terrorism as a spectacle. In contrast, hacktivism is characterised by more group-oriented definitions, rooted in specific events, their injustices, and associated hacktivist campaigns. Recognizing the distinct ideological motivations behind both cyberterrorism and hacktivism, this thesis concludes by proposing an ontological framework in effort to decentralise the dependency towards specific research definitions. This framework aims to facilitate the collection and dissemination of event details related to these phenomena, fostering more extensive and collaborative research efforts in this evolving field.en
dc.description.statusNot peer revieweden
dc.description.versionAccepted Versionen
dc.format.mimetypeapplication/pdfen
dc.identifier.citationHosford, K. 2024. Mapping the production of knowledge of cyberterrorism and hacktivism research using an integrated bibliometric and content analysis framework. PhD Thesis, University College Cork.
dc.identifier.endpage464
dc.identifier.urihttps://hdl.handle.net/10468/16378
dc.language.isoenen
dc.publisherUniversity College Corken
dc.rights© 2024, Kevin Hosford.
dc.rights.urihttps://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/4.0/
dc.subjectCyberterrorism
dc.subjectHacktivism
dc.subjectKnowledge mapping
dc.subjectIdeological hacking
dc.subjectBibliometrics
dc.subjectContent analysis
dc.subjectTaxonomy
dc.subjectOntology
dc.titleMapping the production of knowledge of cyberterrorism and hacktivism research using an integrated bibliometric and content analysis framework
dc.typeDoctoral thesisen
dc.type.qualificationlevelDoctoralen
dc.type.qualificationnamePhD - Doctor of Philosophyen
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