Control of violence-an analytical framework

Abstract

One of the core challenges faced by societies in all cultures and ages is that of limiting, and if possible preventing, destructive violence. An understanding of control of violence has to be developed with reference to the established concepts of the social norm and the social order, of power and rule, and of approaches to social control. When one studies the sociological and historical perspectives on control, it becomes clear that control in modern societies is a multi-layered, complex phenomenon. Control arises as a combination of self-control and external control, of coercion, discipline, and self-regulation, and it is exercised by various different protagonists. Different actors of control may employ a wide variety of forms and styles of control. Control of violence, thereby, is an ambivalent category, and control and violence may be interrelated in many different, complex ways. The development of processes and mechanisms of violence control must be examined simultaneously on the levels of the state, society, and the subject. Three fields of violence lend themselves particularly well to analysis: school shootings, terrorism, and states in crisis. © 2011 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC.