Unit 06

Why is there evil in the first place?

Let's take a step back and consider, from a broader perspective, why evil things might happen in the first place.  In Arthur G. Miller's (2004) book entitled The Social Psychology of Good and Evil, Baumeister and D. Vohs wrote a chapter that outlines four root causes of evil and argue that most (if not all) things we might consider evil relate to at least one of them.  We'll consider each in the context of some case studies and research findings, and as you work through this unit try to think of other examples of things you would consider evil and how they map onto these four root causes.

06-A: Instrumentality

• How does instrumentality lead to evil?

• What are some examples of instrumentality?

Something is instrumental if it has value in the context of your goals, so one reason that people might commit acts of evil is to obtain something valuable.  This could be a desperate mugging to get money for food or the slaughter of thousands to secure access to something valuable like water, food, oil, diamonds, or drug trafficking routes.  This is slavery, the sale of children to sexual predators, the heartless neglect of corporations that destroy lives and the environment to make money for executives and share holders.  Evil, in this case, is a means to an end.

06-C: Ideology 

• How can someone's belief in what is "good" cause them do evil things?  Be prepared to discuss in the context of a few examples of how violence was inspired and justified by ideology, religion, and other systems of belief.

Regardless of what you personally believe about the world, the meaning of life, and what if anything happens to you after you die, there is no denying that throughout the entirety of human history, systems of belief about the world have inspired and justified atrocities of epic proportions.  Although most respected religious leaders and scholars will argue that the doctrine they preach (whatever religion that happens to be) calls for peace, forgiveness, and kindness, others have nonetheless used their belief in the same god or gods as the precise reason for why others must be tortured, enslaved, raped, murdered, and otherwise denied the same human dignity they would expect for themselves.  When one's definition of good calls for the destruction of those who defy it, there is no evil too great that cannot be condoned.

In Baumeister and D. Vohs' chapter (Miller, 2004), they make a strong argument for considering ideology to be the biggest cause of evil in the world.  To be clear, that is not to say that ideology is inherently evil, and there is no question that it can be used to motivate incredible selflessness, sacrifice, kindness, and love.  However, the danger is when that same system of beliefs can be used to justify evil... whether that is attacking a single person because their lifestyle is a sacrilege, shooting people in a public market, bombing a building, or slaughtering an entire village of people.  If we were to judge the causes of evil by body count, the greatest by far would be the belief that evil is necessary in the name of what is good, right, and true.

06-D: Sadism

• What is the popular view surrounding sadism and evil, and how is it related to pluralistic ignorance? How has research either supported or negated this view? 

• How do we understand sadism as an adaptive mechanism with regards to opponent processes?

One Note: When discussing the opponent process theory, the article describes the "A" process as getting weaker over time, while in my presentation I show I chart where the "A" process stays just as strong. Either can be true, the result is that over time the "B" process becomes the more dominant experience.

READ: Survey: Online trolls are 'everyday sadists' - Has anyone ever posted a hateful comment online that was directed towards you?  Is it evil to anonymously post things solely to offend and hurt other people?  It turns out there is some evidence that the people who make a habit of doing that (“trolls”) tend to have sadistic tendencies. 

Closing Thoughts...

Describing the reasons why evil things happen does directly not justify them, but rather demonstrates the complicated dynamics involved with human thought and behavior.  These root causes give us a way to categorize, and more importantly, a framework from which to reflect on how we might intervene to reduce the number of evil things that happen.  If some evil is done out of desperation for resources, how do we go about reducing the grotesque disparity that allows a few people to hoard so much of the wealth while others fight over scraps?  How do we counter the influences of extremists that distort ideology and deradicalize those ready to attack in the name of good?  How do we help people develop emotional stability and prevent unstable narcissists from being in the positions of power?  How do we foster more empathy and reduce the development of sadistic tendencies?  We did not know how to treat infections until we understood the science of bacteria... to understand the cause is to have direction in the pursuit of solutions.

If you're interested in learning more...

Read more about the link between self-esteem, stability, and aggression in some more studies that were referenced above.