Culture of Honor: The Psychology of Violence in the South | Richard E Nisbett, Dov Cohen

Culture of Honor: The Psychology of Violence in the South | Richard E Nisbett, Dov Cohen | Excellent! Used in Master's Thesis: Southern Land Abuse.

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Culture of Honor: ...

	Culture of Honor: The Psychology of Violence in the South Richard E Nisbett, Dov Cohen Westview Press, 1996 - 144 pages average customer review:based on 3 reviews view larger image
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In this brilliantly argued book, the authors explore the reasons behind the higher rate for homicides among whites in the southern United States. They discover that it isn't socioeconomic class, population density, the legacy of slavery, or the heat of the South; it is the traditional "culture of honor" -- in which a man's reputation is seen as central to his economic survival -- that makes the difference.

Social Science at its best

The culture of honor is a fascinating look at the role that cultural traditions can play in determining the incidence of homocide and other forms of violence. What I liked most about the book was the way Nisbett and Cohen used all the tools of social science, from survey and archival research to clever laboratory experiments to test their thesis. The way in which they "broke down" their data was particularly convincing. For instance they showed that where cultural influences were strongest(for example, in small towns rather than big cities)the North-South differences in homocide rates were greatest.While there were a lot of statistical tables and graphs, the book was easy and entertaining to read. I would especially recommend it for people who are interested in understanding about regional differences in American ideas about taking the law into your own hands, and for undergraduates who want to get a good look at the way social scientists can tackle complicated questions.

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Excellent! Used in Master's Thesis: Southern Land Abuse.

Excellent book! Used in my M.P.A. Thesis (ARP) literature review for "DO MESS WITH IT! A Sociopolitical Study of Littering and the Role of Southern and Nearby States" (www.uweb.txstate.edu/~ps07/sspacekabs.html). Nisbett and Chen mention the historical yet negative effects of prevailing Scotch-Irish temperament dominating the entire Southern United States. An "absence of the state" and the region's remote population and geography conspired against law enforcement demanding citizen compliance with regulatory edicts. "A man's personal strength," not always based on good character, determined his social credibility, leading to a might makes right mindset and accompanying violence--"a Culture of Honor." My thesis takes Nisbett and Chen further to plausibly explain why this "Culture" helps contribute to a negative legacy of southern environmental attitudes: a corrupt, elitist, Traditionalistic Political Culture; leading high state murder rates; year after year low quality-of-life scores (in comparison to non-southern states).

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Excellent Scientific Study

This is an excellent scientific study which methodically argues several strains of evidence to support the overarching theory. The arguments are very well supported with many graphs and data tables.

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