Honors Theses
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Date of Award
2024
Document Type
Honors Thesis - NSU Access Only
Degree Type
Bachelors of Arts
Degree Name
Political Science
Department
College of Psychology
Honors College
Farquhar Honors College Thesis
Honors College Dean
Andrea Nevins
Home College Dean
Karen Grosby
Faculty Advisor
Justin Landy
Abstract
Should all acts of aggression carried out in war be categorized as War Crimes? The Geneva Conventions and the International Criminal Court set specific parameters as to what does and does not constitute a war crime. Research in the domain of moral psychology shows that individuals are guided by the justness of cause when making moral judgements about combatant behavior. However, no prior research has examined whether justness of cause influences whether atrocities are categorized as war crimes or not. Across two studies, we investigated the role aggressor status plays in lay people’s categorization of war crimes. We predict that in political conflicts, the more one supports one side, the less their acts will be categorized as war crimes, and the less moral condemnation, overall, they will receive. Moreover, in a fictional scenario, the actions of the victim nation will be categorized as war crimes less than the aggressor nation, with the victim nation receiving less moral condemnation. Across both studies, we find support for our predictions. In political conflicts, there was a significant interaction between initial support and attacker. In a fictional scenario, the aggressor nation was condemned more than the victim nation. This research contributes to our understanding of support for war, which in turn dictates policy makers’ choices in declaring war. This research also helps us to better understand lay opinion of war crimes, contributing to moral psychology in the domain of warfare.
NSUWorks Citation
Alexis Lass. 2024. What Is Categorized as a War Crime Depends On Who Commits It: An Asymmetry in Moral Judgments of Acts of War. Capstone. Nova Southeastern University. Retrieved from NSUWorks, College of Psychology. (40)
https://nsuworks.nova.edu/honors_theses/40.
