On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society

by Dave Grossman

—Cultural distance, which includes racial and ethnic differences that permit the killer to “dehumanize” the victim —Moral distance, which takes into consideration intense belief in moral superiority and “vengeful” actions —Mechanical distance, which includes the sterile “video game” unreality of killing through a TV screen, a thermal sight, a sniper sight, or some other kind of mechanical buffer The Shalit Factors Israeli military psychology has developed a model revolving around the nature of the victim, which I have incorporated into this model. This model considers the tactical circumstances associated with: - Relevance and effectiveness of available strategies for killing the victim - Relevance of the victim as a threat to the killer and his tactical situation - Payoff of the killer’s action in terms of —Killer’s gain —Enemy’s loss