As Americans continue to witness senseless violence throughout their communities, the rise of nihilistic violence is raising alarms for law enforcement as officials try to prevent attacks that often come without warning following a mass shooting in New York City that left four dead last month. 

The concept of nihilistic violence – acts lacking an ideological motive and often driven by a need to gain approval in extremist online communities – remains a key conversation whenever a mass tragedy is carried out.  

“Nihilistic violence is destruction for its own sake,” Jonathan Alpert, a New York City-based psychotherapist, told Fox News Digital. “It isn’t about money, ideology, or revenge; rather, it’s violence born of emptiness.”

While officials believe the shooting was rooted in the gunman’s feelings toward the NFL, while also revealing he traveled from Las Vegas to New York City to carry out the attack, Alpert points to the overall lack of agenda from the perpetrator. 

“The randomness of the attack suggests this wasn’t about settling a score or advancing a cause,” Alpert told Fox News Digital. “It was despair projected outward.” 

As data suggests an ongoing trend upward in randomized, nihilistic violence, Alpert said the looming threat of an attack is eroding Americans’ sense of safety within their communities. 

“They’re more frightening because if there’s no motive, there’s no way to protect yourself,” he said. “Gang violence or political violence has targets. Nihilistic violence, by contrast, says anyone can be a victim, anywhere, at any time. That unpredictability shatters the sense of safety we rely on in public spaces.”