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Self-sacrifice for a cause: The role of ideas and beliefs in motivating human conflict

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  27 December 2018

Jeremy Ginges
Affiliation:
New School for Social Research, New York, NY 10011. gingesj@newschool.edushacc319@newschool.eduhttps://www.newschool.edu/nssr/faculty/Jeremy-Ginges/
Crystal Shackleford
Affiliation:
New School for Social Research, New York, NY 10011. gingesj@newschool.edushacc319@newschool.eduhttps://www.newschool.edu/nssr/faculty/Jeremy-Ginges/

Abstract

The role of ideas and beliefs is generally underplayed in Whitehouse's account. However, just as people may feel that their identity is fused with a collective, they may also feel that their identity is fused with an idea (god, history, justice), which can motivate the same type of behaviors that Whitehouse seeks to explain.

Type
Open Peer Commentary
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2018 

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