Summary

The article explores how ordinary individuals can commit war crimes through a gradual process of self-concept alteration.

Abstract

The article delves into the psychological mechanisms behind how seemingly normal people can commit atrocious acts of war. It suggests that this transformation occurs through a series of small, incremental changes in a person's self-concept. These changes are facilitated by actions that initially appear harmless but gradually lead to larger transgressions. The self-concept, which is the collection of stories and beliefs one holds about oneself, adapts to include these new actions, making it easier to justify increasingly harmful behaviors. The article emphasizes the importance of self-awareness and environmental influences in shaping one's actions and encourages readers to consider the long-term impact of seemingly minor decisions.

Opinions

The author believes that anyone has the potential to commit harmful acts given the right circumstances and incremental changes in their self-concept.
It is posited that war crimes and other severe misdeeds do not occur suddenly but develop over time through a series of smaller, seemingly insignificant steps.
The self-concept is malleable and can evolve in various directions based on personal actions and external influences.
The article suggests that people are inclined to seek information that reinforces their current self-concept, which can lead to further development of negative behaviors if not checked.
The author advocates for the importance of a supportive and positive environment to provide nudges in a constructive direction, counteracting negative influences.
The author highlights the role of personal responsibility in directing one's own moral and ethical development, while also acknowledging the significant impact of societal and political pressures.
There is an implicit call to action for individuals to be mindful of their actions and to support others who may be heading down a harmful path, suggesting that small, positive interventions can make a difference.

SOCIAL PSYCHOLOGY

How Is It Possible That “Normal” People Commit Horrible War Crimes?

Stuff that boggles my mind. It turns out to be quite simple.

Do you ever ask yourself: “How on Earth could this have happened?” or “How is it possible that he or she did that?”.

Even though we live in the safest time of all time, we still see or read stories in the news that make the hair on our neck stand up.

That makes sense. Human beings seem — generally — good at heart but can develop into doing truly terrible actions.

Why?

Why can that normal and friendly neighbor develop into a harmful person who does terrible things to humankind?

(I’m not talking about people who are born psychopaths, that sets their actions apart from others. I’m talking about everyday people who were kind, social, and seemed to have their lives in check.)

Let’s take a look at the self to find a possible answer.

I like easy-to-understand explanations myself. So, I’ll keep it very simple, promise!

The Self of A War Criminal

You, I, and everyone around us tell stories about ourselves. We have a story we think we are. We have a story that we share with others when they ask us about who we are and what we find important in life. The fact that we can answer the question ‘Can you tell something about yourself?’ shows that we have a sense of self: that we have self-awareness.

That self — the loose bits of stories about ourselves —are collected in schemes. The total of those schemes is the self-concept. The self-concept contains certain information that ‘belongs’ to us. Information that fits with who we think we are.

We like information that fits with who we think we are. That feels good.

Now, if you’d ask an average person if he or she would ever commit a certain horrendous crime, the chance is (luckily) very, very high that the person would say ‘Hell no’.

The trick is that such (war) crimes don’t start with that size. There are many steps to be taken to arrive at that crime. And that's exactly what happens with the self of a going-to-be-criminal. It develops.

A person can’t imagine himself doing something harmful, but when this person does see himself doing a small act (such as something seemingly harmless to please a dictator, or to fit in with society), that small act is added to the sense of self.

With that seeing, I mean literally that the person observes himself doing something. And with that, the person starts identifying with what he sees himself doing.

Every new action that evolves from that seemingly harmless action will build on top of that previous action. The previous action already fits with the story about the self. That means that the new small difference from that first action is not that far anymore.

An example

It starts with: Oh… Selling my parent’s books which they don’t read anyway and are collecting dust on the shelves is probably not that bad. Can turn into: Mmm… Probably they don’t mind if I ‘borrow’ some money to buy the watch I want instead of selling the books. They wish me the same, and they wouldn’t miss it. Can turn into: They don’t notice the money is gone, so I can as well not give it back. I’m sure they don’t mind. Can turn into: If this is going fine… Maybe it’s better if I do this trick on other people whom I don’t know. They don’t notice it anyway.

Over time, those small changes will lead to massive impacts. A compounding self, you might call it.

Since we like information that fits with the story we have about ourselves, the person likes to take in information that matches his new actions. By exploring that new information, and finding stuff that fits the ‘new’ part of the self, the person will develop that part further and further. Another example: If propaganda now fits in the self, how far is not allowing other sources of information to be broadcasted?

The Developing Self

The self can grow in all directions.

A yoga teacher, criminal, waiter, or University student as a result. You’re the driver. You’re the one who decides in which direction you go. Focus on the smallest actions in life, they can decide your course.

Luckily, there’s no need to fully rely on yourself to make these decisions. Our environment plays a major role in this. Sometimes, the nudges in the ‘wrong’ direction come from politics, a dictatorship, being forced into war, or people bullying us at school.

Try to wiggle yourself into an environment that’s motivating and inspiring positively, and that gives you nudges in the right direction. Those tiny nudges add up!

The self is a developing ‘thing’. It’s compounding. It’s something that changes over time. This goes to show how important tiny actions are.

This also emphasizes how much help we are to others. Do you notice a friend or a relative going on ‘the wrong path’? You guessed that right: there are tiny actions, tiny nudges if you will, with which you can slowly help your friend in a different direction.

Thank you for reading this view from a social psychology perspective. I’m so curious to hear from you. What are your thoughts on this? Have you experienced the effect of a compounding self yourself?

❤

One more story for you:

Tuesday I Waved Goodbye, Wednesday He Died

‘You’re all just too good for me’, he said.

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