Those radicalised are 'normal' people misled, duped into believing ideologies: ISD psychologist

They work behind closed doors, their identities a secret because their job includes working with Internal Security Act (ISA) terror detainees to turn them around from being a threat to society.

Dave (not his real name) has been an intelligence psychologist with the Internal Security Department (ISD) for five years.

When a radicalised person is detained, Dave and others in the team are among those called in to rehabilitate the individual.

He said intelligence psychologists conduct psychological assessments and interventions for individuals detained or issued with restriction orders under the ISA for terrorism-related activities.

Dave, who is in his 30s, added: “Our aim is to better understand each person’s rehabilitation needs, psychological vulnerabilities to radicalisation, motivations and strengths, and tailor our rehabilitation approach accordingly.

“We also run psychological rehabilitation programmes that strengthen areas such as critical thinking, emotional regulation, identity development and adaptive coping.”

In its annual terrorism report released on Sept 10, the ISD, which is part of the Home Team, said the terrorist threat in Singapore remains high, fuelled by conflicts in the Middle East.

Youth radicalisation is a pressing concern, with the number of cases involving young people in Singapore in the past five years, almost quadrupling from four cases between 2017 and 2021 to 15 cases since 2022.

The report also noted that the rehabilitation programmes have been successful. Since 2002, more than 80 per cent of Singaporeans detained under the ISA have been released after making good progress in their rehabilitation.

Dave and his colleague Cass (not her real name), another intelligence psychologist at ISD, spoke to the media via e-mail in a rarely granted interview.

Their counter-terrorism involvement is part of SGSecure, a national movement launched in 2016 to prepare Singaporeans to deal with terrorist attacks and equip them with skills to handle a crisis. The movement will mark its 10th anniversary on Sept 23.

During the interview, Dave and Cass recounted their experience counselling radicalised individuals.

Dave said it was early in his career when he counselled a youth detainee.

“At the time, I had certain expectations about what a radicalised person would look and behave like.

“However, as I sat down with the individual, I was surprised by how ‘normal’ they seemed – their speech, behaviour and mannerisms were familiar, because it felt like it almost mirrored my younger self.

He said the encounter made him realise that the threats he deals with are not always visible just because they are “extreme”, but can be more subtle and invisible.

“This understanding changed the way I approached my work, making me more aware of the complexities and nuances of radicalisation, and more fundamentally, no one is immune to radicalisation,” he added.

Dave said the experience also helped him see that many of the radicalised individuals were “normal” people “who had been misled – some even duped – into believing certain ideologies”.

He added: “This led me to recognise that rehabilitation requires a deeper understanding of the individual’s motivations, vulnerabilities and circumstances.

“Most importantly, it made me believe that these individuals deserve a second chance. Despite the harm they may have wanted to cause or the ideologies they may have espoused in the past, I came to understand that they are still human beings capable of growth and change.”

Cass said she worked with a youth detainee she named Daniel, who transformed into “a confident and capable individual, excelling in his academics and socially, and finding direction in life”.

Daniel came under ISD’s radar after he posted defaced images of Halimah Yacob and called for militant group ISIS to behead her.

He was detained by ISD in January 2020 at the age of 17, and was the youngest detainee then.

“A crucial element in Daniel’s success was the multi-disciplinary and collaborative approach ISD adopted for his rehabilitation.

“By bringing together a diverse range of stakeholders, including his family, psychologists, case officers, religious counsellors, mentors and educational institutions, we were able to create a cohesive and comprehensive support system that catered to his unique rehabilitation needs,” she said.

Cass added that Daniel’s journey reinforced her perspective that by creating and providing an environment that is supportive, nurturing and empowering, “individuals can flourish and move toward the best versions of themselves”.

Daniel was eventually released in January 2022.

To determine whether a person has been rehabilitated, Dave said that ISD conducts psychological and risk assessments.

Other rehabilitation experts from various fields are also involved in the decision-making process, he added.

Cass said an individual’s rehabilitation is broadly organised around ISD’s three-pronged approach of ideological, psychological and social rehabilitation.

She added: “Within each of these areas, there are different programmes and interventions that an individual may undergo. Rehabilitation is not one-size-fits-all.

“We assess each individual’s needs, vulnerabilities and strengths, and identify the programmes and support that would be most helpful to them at that point in their rehabilitation journey.”

Dave said intelligence psychologists in the ISD use psychological science to better understand radicalisation, support rehabilitation and contribute to prevention, as well as ISD’s capability-building efforts to counter such security threats.

Beyond rehabilitation, they also train mental health practitioners in the community to recognise potential early signs of and vulnerabilities to radicalisation and to connect individuals with appropriate support before their radicalisation deepens.

Psychologists in the Home Team also counsel their own officers.

Cass said that as the manager, her role is to ensure that resilience and psychological well-being are built into the way the team is trained, supervised and led, to help them be better prepared to deal with difficult or high-pressure situations.

The support is also given to first responders.

Diong Siew Maan, director of the Home Team’s psychology division, has worked with officers in several high-profile cases, such as the 2004 Tsunami in Phuket, and the Tuas View drowning incident, which saw a young Singapore Civil Defence Force full-time national serviceman drown in a ragging incident.

She said: “Psychologists are very much part of the (Home Team) operation systems.

“In preparing for operations, we may have a pre-psychological briefing session to prepare our officers to know what to expect. During the operations, we will also be tracking some of these issues and addressing them there and then.”

Beyond the Home Team, the psychologists are also involved in supporting the Ministry of Home Affair’s SGSecure movement to help Singapore better respond in the event of terror attacks.

Jasmine Tan, who is the assistant director of the Home Team’s psychology division, said it covers several aspects of psychological preparedness – cognition, emotion and action.

“What we eventually want to do is (to ensure) that in times of a terror (attack) or crisis, people will not freeze up. Collectively, this helps in our collective response and resilience,” she added.

Diong said that Singaporeans’ attitudes towards terror attacks and terrorism have evolved over the past decade.

She added: “We have done studies; we know that people are generally aware. They know they need to report any suspicious behaviour or items.

“This shows that people are actually thinking about it, and they are aware that these threats are real.”

But Tan said there are psychological barriers to overcome, including the bystander effect, where people are less likely to help because they assume someone else will do it.

There is also the fear of being perceived as “kaypoh” or being punished for reporting suspicious items that are not really a threat.

In June 2025, the Ministry of Home Affairs conducted two social experiments to test the public’s response to terror incidents.

The results showed that out of 2,500 who walked past the suspicious items in Tampines and Bishan, fewer than 500 noticed them.

Said Diong: “I think fewer reports do not mean that we don’t care or that we are complacent. It provides a snapshot, but I think Singaporeans still care.”

“There have been a lot of occasions where there was a call for help and Singaporeans responded.”

Given that Singapore has not experienced a mass terror attack, Tan emphasised mentally preparing members of the public in the event of such incidents.

“Everybody can play a part, so it’s about equipping them with the agency to do something in those situations. This could be helping people to evacuate, providing first aid, or even psychological first aid.”

This article was first published in The Straits Times . Permission required for reproduction.

他们秘密工作，身份保密，因为他们的工作包括与《内部安全法》(ISA) 恐怖分子拘留者合作，使他们不再对社会构成威胁。

戴夫（化名）在内部安全部门 (ISD) 担任情报心理学家已有五年。

当一名激进分子被拘留时，戴夫和团队中的其他人会被召集起来，对该人进行改造。

他表示，情报心理学家会对因恐怖主义相关活动而被根据《内部安全法》拘留或被下达限制令的人员进行心理评估和干预。

30多岁的戴夫补充道：“我们的目标是更好地了解每个人的康复需求、心理上的激进化脆弱性、动机和优势，并据此调整我们的康复方法。

“我们还开展心理康复项目，以加强批判性思维、情绪调节、身份认同发展和适应性应对等方面的能力。”

新加坡内政部下属的情报局在9月10日发布的年度恐怖主义报告中指出，受中东冲突的影响，新加坡的恐怖主义威胁依然很高。

青年激进化是一个紧迫的问题，过去五年新加坡涉及年轻人的案件数量几乎翻了两番，从 2017 年至 2021 年的 4 起增加到 2022 年以来的 15 起。

报告还指出，改造计划取得了成功。自2002年以来，超过80%根据《内部安全法》被拘留的新加坡人在改造方面取得良好进展后获释。

戴夫和他的同事卡斯（化名），另一位在 ISD 工作的智能心理学家，通过电子邮件接受了媒体的罕见采访。

他们的反恐行动是“SGSecure”计划的一部分。“SGSecure”是新加坡于2016年发起的一项全国性运动，旨在帮助新加坡人应对恐怖袭击，并培养他们处理危机的技能。该运动将于9月23日迎来十周年纪念日。

在采访中，戴夫和卡斯讲述了他们辅导激进分子的经历。

戴夫说，在他职业生涯早期，他曾辅导过一名青少年犯。

“当时，我对激进分子的外貌和行为有一些预期。

“然而，当我坐下来与这个人交谈时，我惊讶地发现他们看起来非常‘正常’——他们的言谈举止都很熟悉，因为感觉就像是我年轻时的翻版。

他说，这次遭遇让他意识到，他所面临的威胁并不总是显而易见的，仅仅因为它们是“极端”的，它们也可能更加微妙和隐蔽。

“这种认识改变了我对待工作的态度，让我更加意识到激进化的复杂性和细微差别，更重要的是，没有人能免受激进化的影响，”他补充道。

戴夫说，这段经历也让他明白，许多激进分子其实是“普通人”，他们“被误导——有些人甚至被欺骗——而相信了某些意识形态”。

他补充道：“这让我意识到，康复需要更深入地了解个人的动机、脆弱性和处境。

“最重要的是，它让我相信这些人值得拥有第二次机会。尽管他们过去可能想要造成伤害，或者信奉某种意识形态，但我逐渐明白，他们仍然是能够成长和改变的人。”

卡斯说，她曾与一名名叫丹尼尔的青少年拘留者一起工作，丹尼尔后来变成了“一个自信能干的人，在学业和社交方面都表现出色，并找到了人生方向”。

丹尼尔发布了哈利玛·雅各布的污损照片，并呼吁极端组织ISIS将其斩首，之后引起了ISD的注意。

他于 2020 年 1 月被内部安全局拘留，当时年仅 17 岁，是当时被拘留的最年轻的人。

“丹尼尔康复成功的关键因素之一是ISD为他的康复所采取的多学科协作方法。

她说：“通过汇集包括他的家人、心理学家、个案官员、宗教顾问、导师和教育机构在内的各种利益相关者，我们得以创建一个协调一致、全面完善的支持系统，以满足他独特的康复需求。”

卡斯补充说，丹尼尔的经历更加坚定了她的观点，即通过创造和提供一个支持性、培养性和赋能性的环境，“个人可以茁壮成长，并朝着最好的自己迈进”。

丹尼尔最终于 2022 年 1 月获释。

戴夫说，为了确定一个人是否已经改过自新，ISD会进行心理和风险评估。

他还补充说，来自各个领域的其他康复专家也参与了决策过程。

卡斯表示，个人的康复大致是围绕 ISD 的三管齐下方法进行的，即意识形态、心理和社会康复。

她补充说：“在这些领域中，个人可以接受不同的项目和干预措施。康复治疗并非千篇一律。”

“我们会评估每个人的需求、弱点和优势，并确定在他们康复历程的那个阶段最能帮助他们的项目和支持。”

戴夫表示，情报部门的心理学家利用心理科学更好地了解激进化，支持改造和预防，以及情报部门为应对此类安全威胁而进行的能力建设工作。

除了康复之外，他们还培训社区的心理健康从业人员，以便识别激进化的早期迹象和脆弱性，并在激进化加深之前将个人与适当的支持联系起来。

内政团队的心理学家也会为自己的警员提供咨询。

卡斯表示，作为经理，她的职责是确保将韧性和心理健康融入到团队的培训、监督和领导方式中，以帮助他们更好地应对困难或高压情况。

同时，一线应急人员也获得了支持。

内政团队心理部门主管迪昂·修·曼曾与警官们合作处理过几起备受瞩目的案件，例如 2004 年普吉岛海啸和 Tuas View 溺水事件，后者导致一名年轻的新加坡民防部队全职国民服役人员在一次欺凌事件中溺水身亡。

她说：“心理学家是（内政团队）运作系统的重要组成部分。”

“在行动准备阶段，我们可能会进行一次心理战前简报会，让警员们了解可能遇到的情况。行动期间，我们也会跟踪这些问题，并当场解决。”

除了内政团队之外，这些心理学家还参与支持内政部的“SGSecure”运动，以帮助新加坡更好地应对恐怖袭击。

内政团队心理部门助理主任 Jasmine Tan 表示，它涵盖了心理准备的几个方面——认知、情感和行动。

她补充说：“我们最终想要实现的是，在恐怖袭击或危机发生时，人们不会惊慌失措。从整体上看，这有助于我们集体做出反应，增强韧性。”

迪昂表示，过去十年间，新加坡人对恐怖袭击和恐怖主义的态度发生了转变。

她补充说：“我们已经做过调查；我们知道人们普遍都有这种意识。他们知道需要举报任何可疑的行为或物品。”

“这表明人们确实在思考这个问题，他们也意识到这些威胁是真实存在的。”

但谭表示，还有一些心理障碍需要克服，包括旁观者效应，即人们不太可能伸出援手，因为他们认为其他人会这样做。

还有人担心会被视为“告密者”，或者因为举报一些实际上并不构成威胁的可疑物品而受到惩罚。

2025年6月，内政部进行了两项社会实验，以测试公众对恐怖事件的反应。

结果显示，在淡滨尼和碧山路过的2500名可疑物品中，只有不到500人注意到它们。

迪昂说：“我认为报道数量减少并不意味着我们漠不关心或自满。这只是反映了一种情况，但我认为新加坡人仍然很关心此事。”

“新加坡曾多次接到求助电话，而新加坡人都积极响应。”

鉴于新加坡尚未经历过大规模恐怖袭击，谭强调要让公众做好心理准备，以应对此类事件。

“每个人都能出一份力，所以关键在于赋予他们在这种情况下采取行动的能力。这可能包括帮助人们撤离、提供急救，甚至是心理急救。”

本文最初发表于《海峡时报》。转载需获得许可。