There can be no such thing, in law or in morality, as actions forbidden to an individual but permitted to a mob

– Ayn Rand

The recent xenophobic attacks on foreigners in our country have hi-lighted the need to create awareness about violent mobs and how to keep safe when confronted by such mobs.

It is important to note that, regardless of their initial cause, due to our instinctual human responses to group influences, such mobs will result in violent group behaviours.

According to Dr Michael Welner, an American forensic psychologist, in an article about the 2011 London riots, mob violence (including looting) is generally committed by young people who are driven by a need to defy authority and who crave some form of excitement. Hardened criminals make up a small number of participants and they generally instigate the lawless, destructive behaviour and set the vicious tone of the mob.

He further notes that often mob violence and looting is copied, by those who would not normally think to act in this manner, when the media, academics and public authorities try to rationalise the mob behaviour and label it as an expression of “anger” or “disenchantment” creating the incorrect perception of entitlement and legitimacy. Any sympathetic portrayal of the violent mob’s criminal acts exacerbates the mob mentality of diminished responsibility.

Mob violence and looting is not a form of social protest, it is a criminal act. As much as the perpetrators may try to justify their actions by crying “poverty”, poverty is not the cause of looting (many people in many other countries are poor and they do not loot). Mob violence and looting are deliberate acts perpetrated by criminals who seek to take advantage of the situation.

Dr Wendy James, in her blog post on The Psychology of Mob Mentality and Violence indicates the following two psychological theories underpinning crowd (mob) behaviour:-

1. Contagion Theory: Crowds can exert a type of hypnotic influence on their members leading to emotionally charged behaviour i.e. crowd frenzy.
2. Convergence Theory: This indicates that the violent behaviour of a crowd (mob) does not arise because the crowd encourages violence but rather arises because people want to be violent so they come together in a crowd.

Regardless of the psychology behind this violent criminal behaviour, in all instances within a moral and just society, it is unacceptable and the perpetrators of such senseless and violent acts should be named and shamed.  Doing this not only removes the veil on anonymity that these criminals prefer to hid behind, it also provides a starting point for law enforcement to launch criminal investigations into their acts of violence. It has the added effect of shaming the perpetrators in the eyes of their families, their communities and (given the global reach of social media) the world.

Should you find yourself facing the unfortunate situation of being caught in the middle of violent mob action, the following is worth remembering:-

5 Ways to keep safe in a violent mob

1. Be calm, do not panic; stay focused on the goals of staying alive, staying safe and getting out quickly.
2. Be aware; even peaceful demonstrations can turn nasty
3. Get out quickly; if you are aware of what is going on around you and sense / see the potential for danger, move out as quickly as possible without drawing attention to yourself
4. If caught up in the middle of a mob avoid getting trapped up against a wall or fence, this can lead to you getting crushed
5. If caught up in a mob, do not try to ‘out run’ them or slow down, rather move at the same pace as the mob BUT make your way diagonally between the mob i.e. making your way towards the outer edges so that you can cut away from the main body of the mob.

Violent mobs do not create lasting social change

Related Links

Dr Michael Welner | London riots 2011 psychological facts

Dr Wendy James | The psychology of mob mentality and violence

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