Symposium: Understanding, Researching and Resisting Violence: Ethico-Onto-Epistemological Perspectives

In psychology, violence has long been recognized as a significant social problem leading to ample reflections on micro-individual dimensions related to violence, potential regulatory action based on societal and organizational intervention, and scholarly enquiry with dedicated journals on the topic (Psychology of Violence journal). This is because, the “issue” of violence has increasingly been framed as a core concern for community and society wellbeing as the impact of violence may be severe in some incidents and can result in long-term implications for mental health. However, existing perspectives tend to focus on individual level characteristics reducing on the logic of individual (violent) actions, with one perpetuator and one victim. This is in contrast with the view of violence as a manifestation of multiple tensions and conflicts: tensions among individuals, social groups (class, race, religion and their intersections),and, increasingly, geopolitical tensions and ideological clashes between nation states in part as a result of heightened politico-economic rivalry. Violence may occur at the intra-/inter- individual levels, as well as in the workplace, in the public domain, and society at large. Following the Zizekian perspective on violence, violence can be better understood by distinguishing subjective (individual acts) and symbolic (language and discourse) levels of violence, but also by expanding the view to a systemic level (ideology, e.g., capitalism) of violence. This symposium combines different perspectives with precisely the aim to enlarge the understanding of violence, as a systemic ideological and phenomenological condition rooted in the logic of “letting the other die” or “lives that do not matter”. Presentations offer indications on how violence is institutionalized, structured and maintained from a systemic level, that is from such ideological logics. Ideas for resistance and ethical binds are also presented. Conceptual, empirical and artistic works are included in the symposium.