Journal Nine

Journal 9: What factors influence conflict dynamics as we look at why individuals, groups, and nations engage in conflict? Why do you think humans seem so willing to commit horrible acts of atrocity against other humans in the name of justice, security, and peace?

I think one of the largest influences on why individuals, groups and nations engage in conflict is to protect their identity and the safe place that they have within that group or nation. I think this is also what makes people so willing to commit horrible acts of atrocity. When people belong to a group or nation and have very little or no contact with other groups or nations, the other group or nation becomes a kind of abstract idea instead of a group or real living people. They can become the enemy and dehumanization can take place without anyone really having to try very hard to make it happen. I think that fear has a lot to do with this. When we have very little contact or exposure, or the other group or nation is different culturally from us, we don't understand and our sense of identity becomes threatened by something we don't understand. Often, instead of seeking too understand, the easier solution is to create more walls around ones own group and shut out other group and attack if that is threatened. People don't feel individually responsible for acts of extreme violence when they're part of a group, defending the group, and have some sort of justification for their actions. This is something that needs to shift, but largely has to be a shift the individual in question has to decide they want to put effort into.