Why Humans Fight: The Social Dynamics of Close-Range Violence

Malešević offers a novel sociological answer to the question of why humans fight, emphasizing the centrality of social and historical contexts that make fighting possible. He argues that fighting is not an individual attribute but a social phenomenon shaped by one's relationships with other people and draws on recent scholarship across academic disciplines to demonstrate this. The book explores the role of biology, psychology, economics, ideology, and coercion in one's experience of fighting, emphasizing the cultural and historical variability of combativeness.

Format: Paperback / softback
Length: 320 pages
Publication date: 06 October 2022
Publisher: Cambridge University Press

Malešević presents a fresh sociological perspective on the enduring query: Why do humans engage in conflict? Instead of solely examining the motivations of isolated individuals, he underscores the pivotal role of social and historical contexts in enabling warfare. He contends that fighting is not an inherent characteristic of an individual but rather a social phenomenon shaped by one's relationships with others. By drawing upon recent scholarship from diverse academic disciplines and conducting in-depth interviews with former combatants, Malešević compellingly argues that one's willingness to engage in combat is a contextual phenomenon influenced by specific ideological and organizational logics. This book delves into the intricate interplay of biology, psychology, economics, ideology, and coercion in shaping one's experiences of conflict, highlighting the cultural and historical diversity of combativeness. Through the exploration of numerous historical and contemporary examples from across the globe, Malešević showcases how social pugnacity emerges as a relational and contextual phenomenon with its own autonomous characteristics.

ISBN-13: 9781009162814