To increase combat effectiveness, military training evolved to bypass this natural reluctance through behavioral conditioning.
: Modern training replaced traditional bulls-eye targets with man-shaped silhouettes that pop up, forcing a "stimulus-response" action rather than a conscious moral decision. On killing : the psychological cost of learning...
: He posits that this aversion is a deep-seated evolutionary adaptation. Just as many animals use ritualized combat rather than lethal force against their own kind, humans have a biological "safety catch" against intraspecies killing. The Science of Overcoming Resistance Just as many animals use ritualized combat rather
Grossman’s analysis begins with a striking historical observation: in World War II, only about of combat soldiers actually fired their weapons at the enemy. While conditioning makes soldiers more efficient in the
: These methods were highly effective; by the Vietnam War, the firing rate among soldiers skyrocketed to approximately 95% .
While conditioning makes soldiers more efficient in the moment, it does not protect them from the aftermath. Grossman identifies several "killing response" stages, including .
: Grossman notes that killing is psychologically easier when physical or emotional distance is maintained—such as through long-range artillery or the use of dehumanizing language (e.g., "collateral damage"). The Psychological Cost