‘Honour’ killing in India: A Psychological analysis Sub Theme:-Psychology for Social Justice and Equality Presentation mode: - Poster Hashir Ahammed AV 2nd BSc Psychology Sree Saraswathi Thyagaraja College Pollachi, Tamil Nadu Email: hashirahammedav@gmail.com Mobile: - +91 9655196105 Abstract This is a Research Paper based on an exploratory study done by the Research Scholar which explores different psychological aspects of ‘Honour Killing’ based on the reports, research studies and anecdotes published and observations made with an intensive approach on the concept. It is a study designed to identify and research different psychological dimensions like ‘Culture’, ‘Attitude’, ‘honour’ ‘Belief’ ‘Morality’ etc and its bearing on ‘Honour Killing’ based on the conflict between the individual and the family due to various reasons like choice of sexual/marital partner, Education and employment, Dress, Behaviour and contact with the opposite sex, Sexuality, General conformity to the family and community’s culture and expectations. This exploratory study was carried out as a qualitative research under Indian scenario based on secondary data available on the area which also included basic references on international incidents on the same. The research enquiry focused on several research questions: What is ‘Honour Killing’ and its various types?; How the psychological aspects of ‘culture’, ‘honour’, ‘morality’, ‘attitude’ and ‘belief’ are connected with ‘honour killing’?; Why the above said psychological concepts in human beings are more stronger than the other psychological concepts in them like ‘feelings’, ‘emotions’, ‘sentiments’, ‘humanity’ and other social traits when they commit homicides in the name of ‘honour’?. Why people are inclined to obey and follow biased and communal based ‘Khap’ Panchayats instead of the existing legal and Constitutional provisions and systems in the Country while treating issues or incidents? The study points out how the multifarious psychological aspects influencing ‘honour killing’ and to what extent it creates panic and havoc in the society which deter the stability of social life thereby ends life of many citizens in a nation as well as affects the development of a nation. Key Words- Psychology, Attitude, Honour Killing, Violence, emotions Introduction Honour is an abstract concept entailing a perceived quality of worthiness and respectability that affects both the social standing and the self-evaluation of an individual or corporate body such as a family, school, regiment or nation. Accordingly, individuals (or corporate bodies) are assigned worth and stature based on the harmony of their actions with a specific code of honour, and the moral code of the society at large. Honour as a code of behaviour defines the duties of an individual within a social group Cultures vary in their emphasis on and definition of “honour.” It is possible that some cultures, those with a history of herding settlements, developed a “culture of honour” (Nisbett & Cohen, 2009). Unlike farmed crops, herds roam freely and are vulnerable to theft. Without institutionalized laws and government enforcement, it was up the early settlers to protect their property themselves. Therefore, developing a reputation for toughness and violent retribution for wrongdoing was beneficial to herders. This emphasis on strength, power, and the ability to enforce one's will on others remains a culturally valuable trait to this day in some areas of the world. In such cultures men are attuned to insults and threats to their reputation. An honourable man is one who keeps others, especially his wife, “in line.” Female infidelity breaches this honour. It signals that the man is weak and may result in, not only a loss of face, but also a loss of status. One study (Vandello & Cohen, 2003) provided evidence for this explanation by asking participants from Brazil (a high honour culture) and the US (a lower honour culture) to report their attitudes toward men whose wives had cheated on them. Participants in Brazil had a worse view of men who had been cheated on, seeing them as not only less masculine, but also less trustworthy than those who had not been cheated on. These differences were either lower or not existent for US participants. The study also showed evidence that violence against the wife restores the man’s status. Brazilian participants reported that a man, who yelled at and slapped his wife, after learning she was having an affair, was stronger and more trustworthy than one who yelled at her without slapping. While many cultures see sexual impiety as wrong, some individuals elevate this wrong to a breach of a sacred moral code akin to killing an innocent person. Purity, which includes rituals and norms related to the body and sexual behaviour, may seem like a matter of choice and preference to those who happen to be liberal, from “Western” nations, have higher education, and/or have higher social economic status. However, for much of the world, violations of purity norms are exceedingly damaging. Sexual deviance including infidelity, immodesty, and homosexual acts are considered breaches of a sacred code. Those who perform such acts defile themselves and deserve retribution. In some cultures, their impurity may taint not only themselves, but their families and must be punished or killed in order to cleanse this defilement. In the realm of the psyche, if something evokes feelings that are totally disproportionate in intensity to those warranted under the circumstances, it’s a pointer to the need to explore the source of the extreme emotion. Emotions are our feelings. Literally we feel them in our bodies as tingles, hot spots and muscular tension. There are cognitive aspects, but the physical sensation is what makes them really different. Emotions control your thinking, behavior and actions. Emotions affect your physical bodies as much as your body affects your feelings and thinking. John D. (Jack) Mayer says, “Emotions operate on many levels. They have a physical aspect as well as a psychological aspect. Emotions bridge thought, feeling, and action – they operate in every part of a person, they affect many aspects of a person, and the person affects many aspects of the emotions.” Dr. Maurice Elias says, “Emotions are human beings’ warning systems as to what is really going on around them. Emotions are our most reliable indicators of how things are going on in our lives. Emotions help keep us on the right track by making sure that we are led by more than the mental/ intellectual faculties of thought, perception, reason, and memory.” Negative emotions such as fear, anxiety, negativity, frustration and depression cause chemical reactions in your body that are very different from the chemicals released when you feel positive emotions such as happy, content, loved, accepted. Emotions often lead to coping activities. When we feel something, we consequently respond to that feeling. This can be both in the immediate (and often subconscious) response to the feeling and also in the more thoughtful handling of the aftermath. Where this has been a negative feeling, the response may range from vigorous justification of our actions to conciliatory apologies and other 'making up'. A common response to the repression of unwanted emotions is displacement, where we act out our frustration in other ways. Thus a reprimanded child, knowing they cannot answer back, may go and 'punish' their toys. Emotions affect and are a part of our mood, which is usually a more sustained emotional state. Mood affects our judgment and changes how we process decisions. Pride or honour is a twofaced emotion. On the one hand it can be noble and good, and on the other it can be selfish and mean. It all depends on how it is used. In psychology, an attitude refers to a set of emotions, beliefs, and behaviours toward a particular object, person, thing, or event. Attitudes are often the result of experience or upbringing. They can have a powerful influence over behaviour. While attitudes are enduring, they can also change. An attitude is "a relatively enduring organization of beliefs, feelings, and behavioural tendencies towards socially significant objects, groups, events or symbols" (Hogg, & Vaughan 2005, p. 150). "A psychological tendency that is expressed by evaluating a particular entity with some degree of favour or disfavour" (Eagly, & Chaiken, 1993, p. 1) Psychologists define attitudes as a learned tendency to evaluate things in a certain way. This can include evaluations of people, issues, objects, or events. Such evaluations are often positive or negative, but they can also be uncertain at times. Attitudes can also be explicit and implicit. Explicit attitudes are those that we are consciously aware of and that clearly influence our behaviours and beliefs. Implicit attitudes are unconscious, but still have an effect on our beliefs and behaviours. Attitudes form directly as a result of experience. They may emerge due to direct personal experience, or they may result from observation. Social roles and social norms can have a strong influence on attitudes. Social roles relate to how people are expected to behave in a particular role or context. Social norms involve society's rules for what behaviours are considered appropriate. Attitudes can be learned in a variety of ways. Consider how advertisers use classical conditioning to influence your attitude toward a particular product. In a television commercial, you see young, beautiful people having fun in on a tropical beach while enjoying a sport drink. This attractive and appealing imagery causes you to develop a positive association with this particular beverage. Operant conditioning can also be used to influence how attitudes develop. Imagine a young man who has just started smoking. Whenever he lights up a cigarette, people complain, chastise him and ask him to leave their vicinity. This negative feedback from those around him eventually causes him to develop an unfavourable opinion of smoking and he decides to give up the habit. Finally, people also learn attitudes by observing the people around them. When someone you admire greatly espouses a particular attitude, you are more likely to develop the same beliefs. For example, children spend a great deal of time observing the attitudes of their parents and usually begin to demonstrate similar outlooks. Researchers have discovered that people are more likely to behave according to their attitudes under certain conditions: When your attitudes are the result of personal experience. When you are an expert in the subject. When you expect a favourable outcome. When the attitudes are repeatedly expressed. When you stand to win or lose something due to the issue. In some cases, people may actually alter their attitudes in order to better align them with their behaviour. Cognitive dissonance is a phenomenon in which a person experiences psychological distress due to conflicting thoughts or beliefs. In order to reduce this tension, people may change their attitudes to reflect their other beliefs or actual behaviours. Honour Killing An ‘honour’ killing is the most extreme form of Honour Based Violence (HBV) where the supposed offender against family ‘honour’ is killed to restore the ‘honour’ which has supposedly been lost through her behaviour. An ‘honour’ killing is the most extreme form of violence which may be expressed as a final resort; however there are other lesser responses, such as forcing marriage or other forms of violence which may also be expressed. Those cultures in which ‘honour’ crimes occur are considered ‘high-context’ where the family predominates over the individual, and therefore any individualistic choice which challenges the collective identity and aims of the family may be considered selfish and a violation of that family’s honour. Potential sites of conflict between the individual and the family may include: Choice of sexual/marital partner Education and employment Dress Behaviour and contact with the opposite sex Sexuality General conformity to the family and community’s culture and expectations. While HBV is mostly associated with the Middle East and South Asia it has also been recorded in Eastern Europe and Central Asia. There may be many other countries where such crimes occur but where it has not yet been identified or quantified. Many ‘honour’ killings have been recorded in Europe and America within diasporic immigrant communities: the first high-profile murder to be recognised as an ‘honour’ killing in Europe was the death of Fadime Sahindal. While it may be the case that HBV decreases in minority populations over time as they become more integrated into the dominant society, it may also be the case that some communities become isolated and ghettoised, maintaining traditional maledominant family structures as a form of resistance against the majority culture, particularly where economic and social integration is poor, and where minorities are subjected to racism and prejudice. The United Nations Population Fund reported 5,000 honour killings per year in 2000. However, these figures are disputed and there has not been any subsequent global estimate. Thus the number of ‘honour’ killings and acts of HBV are currently not known These figures are considered estimates and are widely believed to be severe underestimates. Due to lack of focused reporting and recording of Honour Killings internationally very little is known about the true extent of HBV worldwide. 5000 honour killings internationally per year. 1000 honour killings occur in India 1000 honour killings occur in Pakistan 12 honour killings per year in UK In these cultures, the women of the family are seen as representing its honor, so there is massive pressure on them to behave ‘properly’. This means dressing modestly, never talking to men outside the family, never attracting attention to themselves, and most importantly of all, avoiding sex before marriage (or outside marriage, once they are wed) and agreeing to marry a partner chosen by their family. Other types of behaviour seen as ‘dishonorable’ for women - and therefore as punishable by death – include political activism, investigating other religions, and requesting a divorce. There have also been many cases of homosexual boys being killed to preserve the family ‘honour.’ If a family member deviates from this code of behaviour, the family’s reputation is sullied. The only way they can redeem themselves is by murdering the relative – again, usually the daughter – who has dishonoured them. It doesn’t matter if the relative is completely innocent. It could simply be that she’s attractive, and so been shown attention by men outside the family; it could be that she lost her virginity by being raped. The fact that she has sullied the family’s reputation is enough to justify murdering her. For example, Amnesty International reported a case in Turkey of a 16 year old girl who was murdered after her family heard a love song being dedicated to her on the radio. In Pakistan, a girl with learning difficulties was killed after being raped, even though the relative who raped her was found and prosecuted. Origin of the problem Honour killing is as incomprehensible as it is tragic. Why would seemingly sane people be willing to kill their own offspring – daughters they have conceived, given birth to and spent many years nurturing – for the sake of their reputation? It doesn't make any sense from an evolutionary point of view. If the Neo-Darwinian view of evolution is correct, human beings should be least likely to kill the people with whom they share most genes (i.e. their children). They should be willing to die for their children – or at least to nurture and protect them – not kill them. Like the puzzle of why human beings can be altruistic towards people – and other living creatures – with whom they have little genetic connection, honour killing seems to highlight shortcomings within Neo-Darwinian theory. Honour killings are clearly related to male domination too, and low female status. It’s only possible for fathers to kill their own daughters – or brothers their own sisters – because they place a very low value of female life to begin with. If women were revered and respected, then no one would consider killing – or even abusing – them. It’s no coincidence that many of the cultures which practice honour killing – for example, India and Pakistan – also practice female infanticide. In these cultures, female life has negligible value, and so to destroy it is only a minor crime. Like so many other ‘insane’ types of human behaviour – such as warfare, racism and materialism – honour killing ultimately stems from a sense of existential vulnerability and incompleteness. It’s this sense of lack which creates the need for belonging and status, and the paranoid fear of losing them. The issue and its lethal face The term honour killing generally means the murder or killing of a family member by other family member or members or relatives of that family. Generally the driving force behind such honour killing is the protection of reputation or honour of the particular family in issue. The term applies to killing of both males and females. The practice of honour killing is prevalent whole over the world. Inter caste and inter religious marriages are one the main factors responsible for honour killing in India. In India the caste system has acted as a catalyst behind the honour killing cases. In India cases of honour killing are rising these days. Around 1000 young people are killed every year in connection with honour killing cases. However there is no specific parliamentary law in India which deals with honour killing. Appropriate sections of the Indian penal code are still serving the purpose. Generally sections for murder and criminal conspiracy come into play in such cases. According to section 302 of I.P.C, “Whoever commits murder shall be punished with death or imprisonment for life and shall also be liable to fine”. Again section 120B I.P.C provides that, the incident took place on 2nd September 29, 2010 in Haryana. The brother, grandmother and a cousin of the teenage girl were arrested from ‘Rohtak’ after the girl was murdered for her love affair. The 17 year old girl was a class 12th student of the ‘Vaish Girls Sr. Secondary School’ in ‘Rohtak’ and was killed by her own brother Deepak. The incident occurred in presence of other family members at their home. She was killed because her family members disapproved her love affair with a boy. They tried to cremate her dead body at night, but the Haryana police on the basis of information traced a car and recovered the dead body from the car. The deceased’s brother, grandmother and a cousin who were present in the car were arrested and charged under sections of murder and criminal conspiracy The psychology of honour killing Attitude forms with a collaboration of emotion and belief. These emotions and belief are explained in various degrees. EMOTION BELIEF Behaviour is a by product of attitude. ATTITUDE BEHAVIOUR Emotion There are only two basic type of emotion that we all experience. There are only two basic emotions that we all experience, love and fear. All other emotions are variations of these two emotions. Thoughts and behavior come from either a place of love, or a place of fear. Anxiety, anger, control, sadness, depression, inadequacy, confusion, hurt, lonely, guilt, shame, these are all fear-based emotions. Emotions such as joy, happiness, caring, trust, compassion, truth, contentment, satisfaction, these are love-based emotions. Love and Fear And all other emotions are variations of these two emotions, an individual forms thought and behaviour from either a place of love or a place of fear. When a family faces honour based issues, members of that family will have a conflict between emotions. Fear and Love having a competition to dominate, in this competition Love will defect by fear and fear will dominate. Then the varying degree of intensity of emotion will result or influence the outcome which expressed. Belief Belief of an individual will vary accordingly to their culture, religion, tradition e.t.c Culture: - some culture especially those with a history of herding settlement developed a “culture of honour” Some group of families who give more importance to the society and culture, they were thinking that maintaining or protecting culture is more important and they were ready to give up or sacrifice any object, person, thing or event. Religion: - religious belief is also an important factor of belief. By varying religion, there are different type of belief are present. In some religion the marriage between (sapindas) people within the third generation in the ascent of mother and fifth generation in the ascent through father and marriage between close relatives are prohibited. Yet marriage between close relationship and gotra seems to evoke a great deal if moral indignation, fury and rage – enough to warrant brutal killing. Traditional belief:- In some traditions, Women are restricted to dress modestly and they are not allow to talk with men outside the family, never attracting attention to themselves and most important of all avoiding sex before marriage and agreeing to marry a partner chosen by their family. If the women’s behaviour seems as dishonourable to the family then they will punishable by death. Attitude is like an iceberg which is visible to others is a micro portion compared to the major area which is hidden under where most of the behavioural changes and emotional turmoil happen in an individual. Most of the decisions related to love or fear will be taken in the underground part where many other concepts regarding a matter shall be analysed to evolve a decision. So it would be difficult to understand how or why a person has taken a decision when he/she commits a crime in relation with an incident. From the above explanations it is clear that the emotion of 'Love' is weaker than 'Fear' and it is always evident that 'fear' dominates over 'love' and to defend the consequence of 'fear' individual commits crime. sometimes it is obscure to distinguish the fact that how could an individual forgets the sentiments and feelings related to 'love' and jump into disastrous problems which may lead them to prison. Most of the cases reported on Honour Killing are related to 'Caste', 'religion', or 'community' related crimes. Caste, religion or community is manmade rules or regulations which are not tangible. These are based on some belief or thought which are propagated by some individuals or groups. These beliefs are actually created or conceived to guide the humans on right path so that they can live a good life as well as can create congenial environment for others to live happily in this world. These beliefs when touched with false pride and superstitions lead to fear which will topsy-turvy the minds of individuals and they lose their good emotion called 'love'. When one kills his/her own daughter/son, sister/brother in the name of 'honour' it is imperative to analyse the attitude of that culprit in a different dimension. How an individual sees relationship and societal pride. When a man kills his own daughter for regaining the 'honour' which he thinks had lost due to her act is not thinking that how much love that daughter showered on him or the days he spent with her as a baby till adulthood. All the years of 'love' and 'care' he had for the child disappears when he see things through his narrow outlook of community, caste or religion. Dominance of fear among individuals rather than love is the reason behind the drastic shift of emotion from love to hatred and revenge. Religion and community are inducting fear among individuals but not love or compassion among people. When a religion or community create havoc among the minds of people and which will threaten human beings to destroy their own offspring in the name of invisible code of conduct then originates the question of value and significance of relationships. Family started before the origin of community or religion and it was the first form of life and relationship on earth which depends on love, care, protection and happiness. Family is the space where children are protected and taken care of from all evils. Parents and siblings are part of this beautiful bond which created out of blood relation and emotions. Family is a tangible form of relationship. Family is an institution based on love not fear or hatred. But the strong bond of family is been tampered by the emotion of fear only because of invisible factor called religion, community, caste and false pride. Here love defeated by fear. This shows the dominance of negative emotion over positive emotion among people due to adverse effects of wrong beliefs and false pride. The ill effects of fear on caste, religion or community conceive a negative attitude among individuals and it will lead to develop fear and hatred instead of love. This fear and hatred will become stronger when their own loved ones provoke their subtle fear intertwined with religion, community or caste. From this it is clear that religion, community and caste are fear based emotions which are lethal when gets any kind of provocation. It is contradictory to know that all religions preach about love and human brotherhood but the same religions preach and invoke homicide. The strong feelings towards religion, caste and community are due to fear not because of love. This is the worst part in creating attitude among individuals. Fear based faith and belief in religion, caste and community overpowers the loved based relationships and here the two contradictory paths tussles each other and fear wins over love. So it is obvious that the religion, caste and community are fear creating factors which are wearing false masks of love to influence and dominate the human beings so that they can control them through fear in the name of love. Emotion of fear can only tame human minds than love. The freedom and space which love extends to humans are not available in fear. Fear is a closed and narrow emotion which will not allow people to think rationally. It will hamper the soft and positive thoughts of human mind and motivate them to do tragic things. This results in the dominance of fear over love in creating attitude and behaviour among individuals. Suggestion While attitudes can have a powerful effect on behaviour, they are not set in stone. The same influences that lead to attitude formation can also create attitude change. Classical conditioning, operant conditioning, and observational learning can be used to bring about attitude change. Classical conditioning can be used to create positive emotional reactions to an object, person, or event by associating positive feelings with the target object. Operant conditioning can be used to strengthen desirable attitudes and weaken undesirable ones. People can also change their attitudes after observing the behaviour of others. There is a need for developing attitudes beyond religion, caste, community or other personal or individual preferences. Humanity shall be considered as the base or taking all decisions not impulsive actions. References Cohen, D. (1998). ‘Culture, social organization, and patterns of violence’ Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 75, 408-419. Cohen, D. and Nisbett, R. E. (1994). ‘Self-protection and the culture of honor: Explaining southern homicide’, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 20, 551-567. Cohen, D. and Nisbett, R. E. (1997). ‘Field experiments examining the culture of honor: The role of institutions in perpetuating norms about violence’, Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin, 23, 1188-1199. Cohen, D., Nisbett, R. E., Bowdle, B. F. and Schwartz, N. (1996). ‘Insult, aggression, and the southern culture of honor: An “experimental ethnography”, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 70, 945-960.
