Control of Violence (eBook)

Wilhelm Heitmeyer (Dr. phil.) is Professor of Socialization and Director of the Institute for Interdisciplinary Research on Conflict and Violence at Bielefeld University. His research interests concentrate on violence, social disintegration, right-wing extremism, and ethnic-cultural conflicts. His publications include International Handbook of Violence Research (co-edited with John Hagan); Rechtsextremistische Orientierungen bei Jugendlichen [Right-Wing Extremism Among Young People] (1987); Gewalt [Violence] (1995); Bedrohte Stadtgesellschaften [Urban Societies Under Threat] (co-edited with Reimund Anhut) (2000). He is Editor-in Chief of the International Journal of Conflict and Violence (with D. Massey et al.). He is organizer of the international research group "Control of Violence" at the Center for Interdisciplinary Research (ZiF), Bielefeld University (with Heinz Gerhard-Haupt/ Bielefeld, Florence). Heinz-Gerhard Haupt (Dr. phil.) is Professor of Social History at Bielefeld University and Head of the department of history and civilization at the European University Institute in Florence, Italy. His work focuses on social History and political History of Modern Europe, Methodology of Comparative History. His current research projects encompass History of Political Violence in 19th and 20th Century Europe, History of Consumption in 19th and 20th Century Europe, History of Social Movements and Classes: The First of May in Europe after 1945, Comparative History of European Nationalism: Nation and Religion in 19th and 20th Century. Recent publications include Neue Politikgeschichte [New political history](with Ute Frevert, eds.) (2005); Exklusion und Partizipation [Exclusion and particpiation] (with C. Gusy, Eds.); Terrorismus in der Bundesrepublik: Medien, Staat und Subkulturen in den 1970er Jahren [Terrorism in the Federal Republic of Germany: Media, state, and subcultures] (with K. Weinhauer and J. Requate, Eds.) (2006). He is organizer of the international research group "Control of Violence" at the Center for Interdisciplinary Research (ZiF), Bielefeld University (with Wilhelm Heitmeyer/ Bielefeld).

Preface 5
Contents 7
Contributors 10
About the Editors 13
Part I Introduction 15
Control of Violence---An Analytical Framework 16
1 The Social Order and the Problem of Controlling Violence 16
2 Violence and Its Ambivalence 18
3 Toward an Understanding of Control 19
3.1 Etymological Origins 19
3.2 Sociological and Historical Perspectives on Control 20
3.2.1 Control as State Repression or Social Self-Regulation: Classical Models of the Social Order (Hobbes, Scottish Enlightenment) 20
3.2.2 Power and Rule, Punishment and Discipline: Control of Violence in Modern Societies (Weber, Elias, Foucault) 22
3.2.3 Control, Deviance, and Violence: The Concept of Social Control 25
3.3 The Paradigm of Control: Fields of Action, Forms, and Mechanisms of Control 28
3.3.1 Two Dimensions of Control 29
3.3.2 The Field of Action of Control 29
3.3.3 Forms and Styles of Control 32
3.3.4 Strategies and Mechanisms of Control 33
4 Relationships of Control and Violence and the Ambivalence of Violence Control 34
4.1 Losses of Control as Prerequisites for the Genesis of Violence 34
4.2 Dilemmas of Control: Control Measures as Triggers or Escalators of Violence 35
4.3 Violence as the Cause of Loss of Control 36
4.4 The Ambivalence of Violence Control 37
5 Shifts in Perception Patterns and the Social Conditions of Violence Control 38
6 Empirical Fields of the Relationship Between Violence and Control 41
6.1 School Shootings 41
6.2 Terrorism 42
6.3 Violence in States in Crisis 44
7 Structure of the Book 45
7.1 Topics and Objectives of This Volume 45
7.2 Mechanisms and Strategies of Violence Control 46
7.3 The Micro-level: School Shootings 48
7.4 The Meso-level: Terrorism 49
7.5 The Macro-level: Violence in States in Crisis 51
References 53
Part II Mechanisms and Strategies of Violence Control 58
An End to Violence 59
1 The Subject and Violence 59
1.1 Objectivity and Subjectivity 59
1.2 Classical Approaches 60
1.3 The Subject of Violence 61
2 Violence and Globalization 63
2.1 The End of the Cold War 63
2.2 The End of the Industrial Age 65
3 An End to Violence: The Victims Perspective 67
3.1 Three Registers 67
3.2 Dealing with Threefold Destruction 69
3.3 Acknowledgment in a ''Global'' World 71
4 Dealing with the Violent Player: Subject Policies? 72
References 75
Cross-National Homicide Trends in the Latter Decades of the Twentieth Century: Losses and Gains in Institutional Control? 76
1 Introduction 76
2 Data Sources, Variables, and Measures 78
3 Describing Systematic Trends in Homicide 81
3.1 The Technique of Spline Regression Modeling 81
3.2 Results: Cross-National Patterns in Homicide Trends 87
4 Dynamic Modeling of Homicide Rates 90
4.1 The ''Family Legitimacy'' Thesis 90
4.2 Statistical Procedures 91
4.3 Results 93
5 Summary and Conclusions 95
6 Appendix: Nations Included in the Sample 98
References 98
Self-Control and the Management of Violence 101
1 Self-Control Theory 102
2 The Research Evidence 103
3 Uncertainties 104
4 Toward a More Adequate Theory 105
5 Potential Weaknesses 105
5.1 Neglect of Contingencies 106
5.2 Limited Hegemony 107
5.3 Sources of Self-Control May Be Incomplete or Mistaken 108
5.4 Causal Mechanism May Be Incorrect 111
5.5 Perhaps Too Individualistically Oriented 113
5.5.1 Aggregated Self-Control of Individuals 114
5.5.2 Emergent Structures and Processes 115
6 Assumptions on Which Self-Control Theory Is Based May Be Misleading 121
7 Conclusion 124
References 124
Self-Control, Conscience, and Criminal Violence: Some Preliminary Considerations 130
1 Modifying and Expanding the Concept of Self-Control 131
2 Self-Esteem, Guilt, Shame, and Aggression 137
3 Some Additional Reflections on the Concept of Conscience 142
4 Concluding Remarks 149
References 150
Reading Religious Violence in Terms of Theories of Social Action 154
1 On the Connection Between Monotheism and Violence 155
2 American Scenarios of Violence: From Jonestown to Waco and from Waco to the Freemen of Montana 157
3 Scenarios of Religious Violence in the Middle East Conflict 159
3.1 Israel's Wars of Redemption and Settlements in the Occupied Territories 160
3.2 Struggling for Palestine as Islamic Waqf 162
3.3 American Protestants Looking for a Restoration of Israel in Palestine 163
3.4 The Semantics of ''Resistance Fighter'' Versus ''Terrorist'' 164
3.5 September 11, 2001: War in the Way of God (Ghazwa) 165
3.6 The US War Against Islamic Networks 166
4 Options Beyond the Cycle of Violence 168
5 Conclusion 169
References 170
Religion and Control of Violence 173
1 Introduction 173
2 Affect Modulation and Control of Violence 176
3 Armed Violence and Theological Legitimacy 179
4 Religion and Governability: Religion as an Agent of Integration in the Age of Multiculturalism 183
5 Conclusion 187
References 189
Gun Violence and Control in Germany 1880--1911: Scandalizing Gun Violence and Changing Perceptions as Preconditions for Firearm Control 192
1 Contexts, Categories, Questions 192
2 New CenturyNew Violence? Occurrence and Perceptions 194
3 A New Figuration of Violence: From Knives to Guns 196
3.1 Characteristics of the New Violence 197
3.1.1 Perpetrators and Victims 197
3.1.2 Locations 198
3.1.3 Motives 198
3.1.4 Means 198
3.2 From Knife to Gun Culture 199
4 The Material Base of the New Violence 200
4.1 New Weapons Available 200
4.1.1 Technological Development 200
4.1.2 Attractiveness 201
4.1.3 Dissemination 201
4.2 Technology and Ubiquity Increase Incidence of Violence 202
5 Traditional Habits Meet New Devices: A New Figuration of Violence and a Growing Control Gap 203
5.1 Pre-modern Violence Control 203
5.1.1 Pre-modern Habits of Violent Interaction 203
5.1.2 Pre-modern Habits of Violence Control 203
5.2 Pre-modern Patterns Meet Modern Technology 204
5.2.1 Failure of Violence Control in the Face of Modern Gun Technology 204
5.2.2 Cultural Embedding of Weapons Leads to Omnipresence of Handguns 205
5.3 Negligence and Numbers as Constitutive Factor of the New Violence 205
6 Delay of PerceptionDelay of Control 206
6.1 Administrative Attention from Silence to Concern 206
6.1.1 Calm Observations as the Century Ends 207
6.1.2 1909/1910: Unrest and Concern Trigger Thoughts About Violence Control 208
6.2 A Vague Understanding of New Violence and Old Ways of Control 209
6.2.1 Vague Awareness and Understanding of the Modern Figuration of Violence 209
6.3 Complex Transformations: The Control Gap as Time Gap 209
7 The First Step Toward Control: Politicizing Through Scandalization 210
7.1 Starting the Control Cycle-Initiating Communication 210
7.1.1 Media Attention to Gun Violence 210
7.1.2 Parliamentary Debates 211
7.1.3 Government Activities: Collecting Data, Debating Action, Drafting Legislation 212
7.2 Civil Society and Public Communication as Driving Forces for Violence Control 213
7.3 Gun Laws to Control Politicized Violence: 1928 and After 215
8 Changing Faces of ViolenceVarying Features of Control 215
References 216
Controlling Control Institutions: Policing of Collective Protests in 1960s West Germany 220
1 Police Service in 1950/1960s West Germany 221
1.1 Weimar Traditions, Masculinity, and Crisis of Authority 221
1.2 The Technological and Organizational Modernization of Routine Policing 223
2 Protest Policing in West Germany 226
2.1 Policing Beat Music Riots 226
2.2 Policing Student Protests 227
3 Conclusion 232
References 233
Part III The Micro-level: School Shootings 237
School Violence and Its Control in Germany and the United States Since the 1950s 238
1 Introduction 238
2 The Debate of the Mid-1950s 242
3 The Debate of the Mid-1970s 248
3.1 The United States 248
3.2 The West German Debate in the Mid-1970s 254
4 The Pre-Columbine 1990s 259
5 Conclusion 260
References 261
School Shooting: A Double Loss of Control 265
1 The Argument 265
2 School Shootings: The Phenomenon and the Numbers 266
2.1 Criteria for Classification and Exclusion 266
2.2 Frequency Distribution Over Time 267
3 School Shootings in the Public and Scientific Eye 269
3.1 The Preference for Undifferentiated Pathologization 269
3.2 Scientific Findings on Mental Disorders in School Shooters 270
3.3 Deficits in Explaining the Interaction of Individual Factors 271
4 The Three-Part Composite Theory 272
4.1 Social Disintegration Theory and Its Relevance for Explaining School Shootings 272
4.1.1 Social Recognition: The Basis of SDT 273
4.1.2 Social Processes and the Effect of Disintegration 274
4.1.3 Configurations of Effects 276
4.2 The Youth Theory Facet: The Ambivalence of Growing Up 276
4.3 The Aspect of Control Theory 277
5 Analytical and Empirical Results: Loss of Control Through Cumulative Decay of Recognition 278
5.1 Recognition in the Family: Loss of Control by Parents and Children 278
5.2 Recognition in the Peer Group: Loss of Control over Social Relationships 280
6 Action Settings That Promote Violence 281
7 School Shootings as Indicators of Institutional Losses of Control 283
8 School Shooting as the Radicalization of Social Norms and Values? 285
8.1 The Battle for Recognition and Control: Adolescents Under (Status) Pressure 285
8.2 The Cultural Script of Masculinity: Power Over Others Equals Control 287
9 Dynamics of Escalation: Control, Loss of Control, and Violent Quests for Control 288
9.1 Social Disintegration and Inadequate Conflict Management Skills: Loss of Control over Life Situation 290
9.2 Compensation of Action and Control Deficits: Violent Fantasies 291
9.3 The Quest for Control: The How 291
9.4 From Absolute Loss of Control to the Crime: Triggering Causes 292
10 Social Control Strategies and Losses of Control 293
11 An Interim Conclusion 295
References 296
Explaining and Preventing School Shootings: Chances and Difficulties of Control 299
1 Targeted School Violence 299
2 The Frequency of School Shootings 300
3 Explaining School Shootings: Warning Signs and Possible Risk Factors 302
3.1 Planning of the Offenses 302
3.2 Leaking as a Central Warning Sign 303
3.3 Violent Fantasies and Consumption of Media Violence 304
3.4 Mental Disorders 305
3.5 Risk Factors in the Social Environment 305
3.6 Motives 305
3.7 Structural Risk Factors 306
4 Explaining School Shootings: Explanatory Models 306
5 Deficiencies of Control 308
5.1 Deficiency of Personal Control 309
5.2 Deficiency of Control Within the Social Environment and Within Organizations 309
5.3 Deficiencies of Control Within the Media 310
6 Possibilities of Control and Prevention 310
6.1 Primary Prevention 310
6.2 Secondary Prevention 311
6.3 Further Starting Point for Preventive Purposes 315
7 Concluding Remarks 315
References 316
Masculinity, School Shooters, and the Control of Violence 319
1 Introduction 319
2 Hegemonic Masculinity in America 321
3 Masculinity Wars 323
4 The Womens Movement and Gender Politics 324
5 Hegemonic Masculinity in Crisis 326
6 Ronald Reagan to the Rescue 327
7 Masculinity Wars 329
8 The New Militarism and Paramilitarism 330
9 Bill Clinton and the Sex Wars 332
10 Youth Wars 333
11 Rampage Shootings in the United States from the 1980s to the Present 336
12 Rampage Shootings Outside the United States 339
13 The Control of Violence 342
References 345
Media and Control of Violence: Communication in School Shootings 349
1 Communication in School Shootings 350
2 The Shooters 352
2.1 The Performative Script 352
2.2 Communication via the Media 353
3 The Media 354
4 The Natural History of School Shootings 356
5 Social Control as Communicative Response 358
6 Conclusion 359
7 Appendix: Research on the Effects of Media Violence 361
References 363
Part IV The Meso-level: Terrorism 366
Terrorism as Performance: The Assassinations of Walther Rathenau and Hanns-Martin Schleyer 367
1 The Assassination of Walther Rathenau 369
2 The Assassination of Hanns-Martin Schleyer 378
3 Conclusion 389
References 392
Party Politics, National Security, and Emigre Political Violence in Australia, 1949 - 1973 397
1 Picking Sides and Choosing Battles 399
2 Uneasy Bedfellows 403
3 Romances End 408
4 Denouement 413
References 414
Control of TerrorTerror of Control 417
1 Individual Terrorists 418
2 Terrorist Organizations and Their Aims 421
3 Predictability and Control 424
4 Threat and Response 426
5 Conclusion 429
References 430
Terrorism: Conditions and Limits of Control 433
1 Provocation and Reaction 434
2 Operational Conditions and the Likelihood of Error 436
3 Reference Group Controls and Opportunity Structures 437
4 Opportunities for Intervention 441
5 Conditions of Success and Residual Risks 442
References 444
Fighting for the Community of Believers: Dynamics of Control in the Relationship Between Militant Islamist Movements and their Constituencies 447
1 Religious TerrorismBeyond Control? 448
2 Militant Islamist Movements and Their Reference Groups 450
3 Radicalization and Estrangement: Al-Jamaa Al-Islamiyya and Al-Jihad in Egypt 452
4 Dynamics of Support and Control: Hizbullah in Lebanon 458
5 Conclusion: Patterns of Orientation, Interaction, and Control 463
References 465
Baseless Jihad 468
1 Introduction 468
2 Background 470
2.1 What Happened? 470
2.2 The Revisions' Ambivalent Effects 473
3 Al-Jamaa al-Islamiyyas Change of Mind 475
3.1 Communication as Bargaining Power 476
3.2 Selective Inducements 476
3.3 Repression and Sympathy 477
4 Enabling Jihad but Disabling Al-Qaida 478
4.1 Communication as Bargaining Power 479
4.2 Selective Inducements 480
4.3 Repression and Sympathy 481
5 Conclusion 482
References 485
Part V The Macro level: Violence in States in Crisis 486
Ethnic Riots in Situations of Loss of Control: Revolution, Civil War, and Regime Change as Opportunity Structures for Anti-Jewish Violence in Nineteenth- and Twentieth-Century Europe 487
1 Pogroms as a Form of Collective Violence 488
2 Historical Case Studies 492
2.1 Anti-Jewish Violence in the Revolutions of 1830 and 1847--1848 495
2.2 The First Wave of Pogroms in Imperial Russia, 1881--1883 498
2.3 The Second Wave of Pogroms in Imperial Russia, 1903--1906 501
2.4 The Pogrom Wave during the Russian Civil War, 1917--1921 505
2.5 Polish Border Wars, 1918--1920 507
2.6 Pogroms in the Wake of Operation Barbarossa 509
3 Conclusion 512
References 513
Control and Chaos: Paramilitary Violence and the Dissolution of the Habsburg Empire 517
1 Introduction 517
2 Patterns of Violence: Origins, Manifestations, Legacies 520
3 Conclusions 530
References 532
Failed States in Theoretical, Historical, and Policy Perspectives 534
1 Introduction 534
2 States and Failed States 536
3 A Taxonomy of State Failure 538
3.1 State Failure Type I 538
3.2 State Failure Type II 539
3.3 State Failure Type III 539
3.4 State Failure Type IV 540
3.5 The Failed States Continuum 540
4 Understanding Why States Fail 542
4.1 The Micro-level: The Elites 543
4.2 The Macro-level: Internal Structural Factors 545
4.3 The Meta-level: External Structural Factors 548
5 The Two Imperialisms 549
5.1 Imperialism of Raison d'État 550
5.2 Imperialism of Capitalism 555
6 Rebuilding Failed States 556
7 Conclusion 560
References 560
Putting Out the Fire with Gasoline? Violence Control in ``Fragile'' States: A Study of Vigilantism in Nigeria 561
1 Introduction 561
2 Nigeria: A Fragile State? 566
3 Control of Violence in Nigeria: Vigilantism and the State 570
3.1 The Notion of Vigilantism 570
3.2 Vigilantism and the State---Major Lines of Debate 571
3.3 Vigilantism in Nigeria and Its Historical Precedents 573
3.4 Mistrust of State Controllers of Violence: An Opening for Vigilantes 574
3.5 Time, Space, Identity: Vigilantes at the ''Frontiers'' of the State 576
3.6 Magic and Occult Forces: Alternate Sources of Power and Legitimacy 577
3.7 Vigilantes as Providers of Social Security: Showing Up the State 578
3.8 Involvement in Politico-economic Networks: Resource and Achilles Heel 579
3.9 Between Rejecting and Strengthening the State: An Intermediate Conclusion 580
3.10 The Problem of Controlling the Controllers of Violence: Ambivalences of Vigilante Practices 582
4 Conclusion 583
References 586
Concluding Remarks 590
References 595
Subject Index 596