Complexity of Evil: Perpetration and Genocide

The Complexity of Evil model explains why people participate in genocide by drawing on political science, sociology, criminology, anthropology, social psychology, and history. It focuses on the Holocaust, the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, and the Khmer Rouge genocide in Cambodia, and is systematic and abstract, providing a tool for understanding the micro-foundations of various cases of genocide.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 260 pages
Publication date: 30 December 2020
Publisher: Rutgers University Press

Why do people participate in genocide?

The Complexity of Evil is a groundbreaking book that delves into the complex and multifaceted reasons behind why individuals engage in genocide. Drawing on a wide range of disciplines, including political science, sociology, criminology, anthropology, social psychology, and history, the book offers a comprehensive model that seeks to explain perpetration across various different cases.

In particular, The Complexity of Evil focuses on three case studies: the Holocaust, the 1994 genocide against the Tutsi in Rwanda, and the Khmer Rouge genocide in Cambodia. By systematically sorting and causally ordering a wealth of scholarly literature and supplementing it with original field research data from interviews with former members of the Khmer Rouge, the book provides a deep and nuanced understanding of the motivations behind genocide.

The model developed by The Complexity of Evil is both systematic and abstract, providing a tool for understanding the micro-foundations of various cases of genocide. It emphasizes the importance of examining the social, political, and cultural contexts in which genocide occurs, as well as the individual and group factors that contribute to perpetration. The book also highlights the banal and ordinary nature of many of the motivations behind genocide, emphasizing the need to challenge simplistic narratives and understand the complex and multifaceted nature of evil.

Ultimately, The Complexity of Evil offers a powerful and thought-provoking exploration of one of the most pressing and challenging questions of our time. By providing a comprehensive and empirically grounded model for understanding the motivations behind genocide, the book contributes to our understanding of human behavior and the potential for preventing future acts of violence and injustice.

Weight: 402g
Dimension: 257 x 179 x 25 (mm)
ISBN-13: 9781978814295