The role of group membership in prescribing behaviour
Although psychology is the study of mental processes and behaviour in general,
the attention of psychologists is often devoted to problematic processes and
behavioural patterns either at the level of individual psychopathology or at the
societal, collective level: prejudice and discrimination, inter-group violence and
conflict. To understand behaviour in war and, more broadly, respect for
international humanitarian law, the theory and research findings emerging from
social psychological research are most relevant, for they are primarily concerned
with behaviour that is shaped by and directed towards social entities and
institutions, and towards other individuals because of their membership of specific
social groups. In other words, there is plenty of psychological theory that is
relevant to understanding why one person commits atrocities against another
person,3 but in most cases where international humanitarian law is concerned,
what we are witnessing is behaviour that is unlawful (besides being unethical and
morally repugnant) towards other persons by members of a group because of their
group membership.
This may seem a