The symphony of disorder

Tom van Ham

Chapter 3 in Research Handbook on Violent Crime and Society, 2025, pp 34-47 from Edward Elgar Publishing

Abstract: In this chapter it is argued that collective violence is a highly impactful phenomenon that manifests itself in a wide variety of settings that may be perceived as issue-irrelevant or issue-relevant. The author aims to provide a compact yet comprehensive description of the contextual and individual causes of the initiation and escalation of collective violence and relates these causes to recent insights concerning motives for violent behavior. Furthermore, it is argued that the majority of individuals involved in collective violence tend to engage in violent behavior on a sporadic basis within specific settings. Based on this vantage point, the author globally touches upon strategies aimed at minimizing and preventing collective violence. As intelligence is considered fundamental to a balanced preparation to and policing style around crowd events, various social and technological developments that are or may prove a challenge in the near future are identified.

Keywords: Collective violence; Public order; Demonstration; Intelligence; Disinformation (search for similar items in EconPapers)
Date: 2025
ISBN: 9781035317851
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