Contagion of violence: The role of narratives, worldviews, mechanisms of transmission and contagion entrepreneurs

Miranda Forsyth*, Philip Gibbs

*Corresponding author for this work

    Research output: Contribution to journalArticlepeer-review

    1 Citation (Scopus)

    Abstract

    This paper develops the theory of the social contagion of violence by proposing a four-part analytical framework that focuses on: (1) contagious narratives and the accompanying behavioural script about the use of violence as a response to those narratives; (2) population susceptibility to these narratives, in particular the role of worldviews and the underlying emotional landscape; (3) mechanisms of transmission, including physical and online social networks, public displays of violence and participation in violence; and (4) the role of contagion entrepreneurs. It argues that a similar four-part approach can be used to identify and imagine possibilities of counter-contagion. The application of the theory is illustrated through examination of the recent epidemic of violence against individuals accused of practising sorcery in the Enga province of Papua New Guinea, a place where such violence is a very new phenomenon.

    Original languageEnglish
    Pages (from-to)1-23
    Number of pages23
    JournalInternational Journal for Crime, Justice and Social Democracy
    Volume8
    Issue number3
    DOIs
    Publication statusPublished - 2019

    Fingerprint

    Dive into the research topics of 'Contagion of violence: The role of narratives, worldviews, mechanisms of transmission and contagion entrepreneurs'. Together they form a unique fingerprint.

    Cite this