The massacre mentality and school rampage shootings in the United States: Separating culture from psychopathology

Abstract

AbstractSchool rampage shootings in the United States are becoming a common occurrence. The purpose of this article is place school rampage shooting in a broader cultural context. Specifically, in this article, I introduce the concept of the “massacre mentality” as a cultural manifestation of western and southern U.S. values. The massacre mentality is a state of mind in which the individual feels justified in committing indiscriminate killings in defence of honour, protection of property, assurance of absolute personal safety, or the elimination of challenges to the “natural order” from the perspective of the offender. A review of the social psychological literature will contrast the massacre mentality with related concepts of “culture of honour” and “sanctioned massacre.” The relationship between street violence, another major form of violence, and the massacre mentality is also addressed. A cultural analysis suggests that interactions between individual psychology in the form of U.S. regional values and sociocultural context of schools contribute to school rampage shootings more often than mental illness. The prevention of school rampage shootings will require the identification of students predisposed to adopt the values contributing to the massacre mentality and challenging social hierarchies by restructuring the context of schools, as well as changing cultural norms in the broader society. The ultimate goal is to create a U.S. culture where the massacre mentality is obsolete.