The Routledge Handbook of Terrorism Research. The revised definition is longer than most, after suggesting that the previous attempts, in its quest for consensus, had reduced the level of complexity in the definition, and ended up with "a high level of abstraction". The 2011 revised definition includes 12 points, the first of which is: In an article published in Contemporary Voices in 2020, Schmid revisits the many challenges associated with defining terrorism, outlining six main reasons why this is the case: It is a complex phenomenon. Confusion exists in the terminology, specifically the terms “terror” and “terrorism” and the relationship between the two. Terrorism often has more than one ultimate target. Related to 3. above, there may be as many as 10 audiences for whom the terrorists are performing their acts. There is confusion between terrorism and certain other forms of political violence. There are many forms of terrorism; Schmid previously (1988) identified 12 types, but in recent years references to new types, such as cyberterrorism (arguably belonging to the definition) have been identified. In this article, he also outlines the history of the search for a consensus definition, and the failure of international efforts, including a series of attempts by the UN since the 1972 Munich attack. In his most recent major publication, the Handbook of Terrorism Prevention and Preparedness (2020–2021), Schmid again returns to the problem of the lack of acceptance of a common legal definition by all countries, because "the broader a definition, the more terrorism there is that ought to be countered and the more difficult it becomes to prevent it. If countries have different definitions of terrorism, extradition of terrorist suspects and mutual legal assistance become more difficult and often impossible...”. However the 2011 academic definition of terrorism, which is social-scientific rather than legal in nature, has gained a fair degree of acceptance among scholars. Recognition The first edition of Political Terrorism (1984) won a national award for the best book in political science. Schmid has been described as "a leading orthodox terrorism scholar". Selected works Schmid has authored and edited over 200 publications, including: (Co-authored by Janny de Graaf) (Co-authored by Ellen Berends) Political Terrorism, co-authored with A. J. Jongman, first published in 1984 subtitled A research guide to concepts, theories, data bases, and literature; revised editions published in 1988 and 2005, subtitled A new guide to actors, authors, concepts, data bases, theories, and