Description
Book SynopsisWhy do people persist in supporting torture—and can they be persuaded to change their minds? Erin M. Kearns and Joseph K. Young draw upon a novel series of group experiments to understand how and why the average citizen might come to support the use of torture techniques.
Trade ReviewIn this compelling and salient book, Kearns and Young inject needed experimental evidence into discussions about why and under what conditions the public supports the use of torture in the service of counterterrorism. A must read for any serious student or scholar of counterterrorism. -- James A. Piazza, Pennsylvania State University
In
Tortured Logic, Kearns and Young use clever experiments and careful interviews to provide compelling evidence that public support for torture depends on context. That public support for government violence is so malleable should be of great interest—and potential concern—to social scientists and policymakers alike. -- Courtenay R. Conrad, coauthor of
Contentious Compliance: Dissent and Repression under International Human Rights LawTortured Logic is written by two stellar researchers, one a political scientist and the other a criminologist, which gives this book a strong interdisciplinary perspective. Together, the two authors bring an array of skills that make them well suited to produce a volume of this caliber. -- Victor Asal, University at Albany, State University of New York
Kearns and Young have provided a masterful book which is thought-provoking, richly detailed, and speaks to important policy questions, not to mention pressing ethical debates about the rights of detainees in the war on terrorism. * H-Diplo *
Table of ContentsAcknowledgments
Introduction: What Impacts Public Perception of Torture in Counterterrorism?
1. Media and Perceptions of Torture
2. Fear, Death, and TV
3. Context Matters?
4. Elite Cues, Identity, and Efficacy
Conclusion: Torture, Terrorism, and the Future
Appendix
Notes
Bibliography
Index
