Russian Cannibals: The Case of the Downed Korean Airliner

Abstract

Validation of the Arens atrocity attribution theory was reported. Subjects read a fictitious passage about the crash of a New Zealand airliner en route to the South Pole, with passengers representing 21 different nationalities. Paired comparisons were used to evaluate subjects' perceptions of the likelihood that survivors of each nationality would commit anthropophagy during the period of privation following the crash. The measurements were conducted prior to and following the downing of a Korean airliner by the Soviet Air Force. This incident provided the abrupt change in the attitudes of the American public toward the Soviet Union, necessary for empirical validation of the theory. Implications of the obtained results were discussed within the historical context of the use of the attribution of atrocity for attainment of political goals.