Expressions and Projections of Evil in Mass Violence

Abstract

This article examines two recent school shooting cases in Finland, and the use of the concept of evil as a tool to discern the violence and cruelty of the incidents. The analysis is based on qualitative, focused interviews with local residents. Participants used the notion of evil to describe and understand school shootings and their perpetrators. Evil was mostly associated with the act of violence and with the perpetrators. Processing the experience of evil included the projection and externalization of evil. This process was associated with the fear of being labeled and reluctance to work through the traumatic experiences.

Additional information

Notes on contributors

Johanna Nurmi

JOHANNA NURMI , M. Soc. Sci., is a doctoral student at University of Turku, Finland, where she is preparing her dissertation on the community-level consequences of mass violence.

Atte Oksanen

ATTE OKSANEN , Dr. Soc. Sci., is a Senior Researcher at the Finnish Youth Research Society. Dr. Oksanen's research focuses on mass violence, emerging technologies, and youth. He has published in a variety of areas including youth studies, drug and alcohol research, and cultural studies.