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On Killing: The Psychological Cost of Learning to Kill in War and Society | 
 enlarge | Author: Dave Grossman
Publisher: Back Bay Books
Category: Book
List Price: $15.99
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Rating:  163 reviews
Sales Rank: 2795
Media: Paperback
Edition: 1
Pages: 400
Number Of Items: 1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 0.7
Dimensions (in): 8.1 x 5.5 x 1.3
ISBN: 0316330116
Dewey Decimal Number: 355.0019
EAN: 9780316330114
ASIN: 0316330116
Publication Date: November 1, 1996
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Product Description
The twentieth century, with its bloody world wars, revolutions, and genocides accounting for hundreds of millions dead, would seem to prove that human beings are incredibly vicious predators and that killing is as natural as eating. But Lieutenant Colonel Dave Grossman, a psychologist and U.S. Army Ranger, demonstrates this is not the case. The good news, according to Grossman - drawing on dozens of interviews, first-person reports, and historic studies of combat, ranging from Frederick the Great's battles in the eighteenth century through Vietnam - is that the vast majority of soldiers are loath to kill. In World War II, for instance, only 15 to 25 percent of combat infantry were willing to fire their rifles. The provocative news is that modern armies, using Pavlovian and operant conditioning, have learned how to overcome this reluctance. In Korea about 50 percent of combat infantry were willing to shoot, and in Vietnam the figure rose to over 90 percent. The bad news is that by conditioning soldiers to overcome their instinctive loathing of killing, we have drastically increased post-combat stress - witness the devastated psychological state of our Vietnam vets as compared with those from earlier wars. And the truly terrible news is that contemporary civilian society, particularly the media, replicates the army's conditioning techniques and - according to Grossman's controversial thesis - is responsible for our rising rates of murder and violence, particularly among the young. In the explosive last section of the book, he argues that high-body-count movies, television violence (both news and entertainment), and interactive point-and-shoot video games are dangerously similar to thetraining programs that dehumanize the enemy, desensitize soldiers to the psychological ramifications of killing, and make pulling the trigger an automatic response.
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| Customer Reviews: Read 158 more reviews...
 Outstanding December 5, 2008
The Stig (ACT, Australia)
Buy it without hesitation. This is a seminal work. It should be mandatory reading for every law enforcement person if they're serious about truly beginning to understand their work environment.
An eye opening read October 27, 2008
Richard W. Mcguinness (Worcester, MA USA)
Lt. Col. Dave Grossman's On Killing is a phenominal work. It serves to blatantly scrutinize one of our society's biggest blind spots and social taboos: killing. Everything our society thinks it knows about wartime combat is fundamentally flawed; our conception of the righteous (or less so) soldier wading through battle without thought of the lives he takes is a lie. One of the most interesting points is the exploration of firing rates in historical wars and man's natural reluctance to kill, which apparently supercedes the urge of self-preservation or societal pressures. Those that enjoyed the book Ishmael may find a similar vein in this work (in the way that it explores facets of civilization that we turn a blind eye to conciously or unconciously), which strives to explain information vital to the survival of our society as well as the psychological well-being of our soldiers, however uncomfortable that subject may be. An all around fascinating book that "blew my mind". I reccomend this book for anyone with even a passing interest in psychology or combat, and it is definately a MUST READ for anyone working in the field of Veteran's Affairs.
on combat September 16, 2008
Phillip B. Miller (austin, tx)
I liked the book. I aspired to be come a marine back in the early 80's after finishing college. I talked with some former viet-nam vets who convinced me that graduate school was a better option. I followed their advice based on the stories they told me...this book is a very good testimony of some of their experiences. now at 49 I wish I had become a marine anyway when I had the chance. I personally was'nt aware of the fact that many soldiers on both sides never used their weapons and I side with the author's view point on peace before war but we must always be prepared to defend the constitution of the United States if necessary. never the less the book is a very good study of the human psyche and of the limits of human endurance....
Must read for the military or police. July 2, 2008
Christopher Raissi (Marietta, Georgia)
This book, as many have stated, is great for understanding the psychology of someone returning from the battlefield. But for those who have yet to enter the battlefield, or will shortly find themselves returning, I suggest they read On Combat. That book deals much more with the subject of the physiology and psychology of the act of combat itself and how to prepare for it, rather than how to recognize and deal with it after the fact.
 Good but the second book is much better June 21, 2008
James M. Craig
This is a very good book but pales in comparison to Col. Grossman's second book on combat. This book has a lot of data a is a little dry reading. However, the data is excellent and this book contains great information.
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