Violence prevention

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Violence prevention is an umbrella term for initiatives and measures for the prevention of violent disputes, which are intended to train people in dealing with conflicts and to enable them to cooperate and responsible communication and life even in conflicts.

Conditions of violence prevention

Violence prevention focuses firstly on understanding the phenomenon of violence and how it works in everyday life, and secondly on learning conflict-solving behavior and strategies for self-protection and the protection of others.

Violence is always a cultural and societal dynamic phenomenon that has grown historically and structurally. Violence can therefore be traced on all levels and in all phenomena of a culture and its public sphere: on the level of law as well as on the level of common linguistic terms and attributions. Therefore, violence prevention is an interdisciplinary task and a task of the public space.

It is therefore discussed that public space and discourse play a decisive role in successful violence prevention.

The more precisely the different forms of violence can be distinguished and the more comprehensive and varied the measures taken, the more successful the prevention . A selective measure misses its target. Successful prevention, on the other hand, goes hand in hand with a cultural paradigm shift and shapes an entire culture.

In the first step of prevention, violence must be perceived as violence.

It has to be learned that violence cannot be taken for granted and that it is a cultural product.

In positive terms, violence prevention requires the development of a feeling of unconditional respect for life, which is always individual, that is, unique, and irreplaceable, and the insight into the inviolability of every individual life and the fundamental rights to be guaranteed . Life is an unconditional value that cannot be relativized and, as a natural given and natural gift, serves as a fixed standard for various cultural achievements and misdirection of constructive forces of people: It is an end in itself and strives for the full and free development of individual potential.

Against this background, violence can be understood as the endeavor of an organism not to be able to fulfill its purpose in life of the full and free development of individual potential due to the systemic constraints of a culture and a society.

The insight into the unconditional natural inviolability of life requires the rationality and transparency of a u. a. intercultural and historical comparison, d. H. cultural relativities. In order to be able to reveal the dynamics and mechanisms of violence, a multi- perspective , interdisciplinary and psychological comparison of different forms of violence and the learning of systematic, emphatic acceptance of the victim's perspective are necessary.

Successful violence prevention depends on several conditions, including: a. from:

1) the definition and understanding of violence, its patterns and mechanisms of development;

2) the presence of the problem of violence as a task to be solved in public space;

3) the willingness of society to cooperate, etc.

The task of preventing violence is only sufficiently set if it is positively understood as a culture of unconditional respect for life and its freedom and is structurally implemented: as an endless task with measurable and achievable goals of changing behavior and the system.

Violence is reproduced in behavior and experience through the representation of violence. Therefore, a ban on depictions of violence of any kind is being discussed.

Possible actions

One way of preventing violence is to act as a deterrent through greater control of public spaces. This are security cameras and police patrols used. Because closely related to violence prevention is the idea of the state's monopoly on violence , which puts the use of violence and the enforcement of sanctions within a society in the hands of society. Violence prevention is an aspect of criminology as well as youth welfare and school psychology.

On the other hand, the educational and psychological literature discusses the offers, methods and measures that can be used to prevent the emergence of violence . This includes everything that strengthens conflict management, in particular frustration tolerance and communication skills ; on the other hand, methods of conflict resolution such as dispute settlement and mediation are also included.

The prerequisite for conflict ability is that the conflict situation is perceived as such. After assessing the conflict potential, the possible multilayered nature of the conflict and the willingness of the respective opponents to use violence, suitable measures for non-violent conflict resolution can be initiated. This includes, among other things, the argumentative separation of person and thing (conflict item), acceptance and willingness for non-violent approaches to solving the problem, and the art of solving the conflict in such a way that nobody feels like a loser and certainly does not 'lose face'.

A large number of different approaches and theories exist in the area of ​​violence prevention. In addition to government agencies, there are many semi-governmental and private organizations. This also includes (sports) associations, clubs, but also private institutes.

Situation in Germany

Some state organizations offer such measures directly, such as the police, the State and Federal Police Crime Prevention Program (ProPK) and the German Forum for Crime Prevention Foundation . As a rule, there are state prevention councils in the federal states. Police headquarters house prevention officers. The education ministries are heavily involved in violence prevention through teams of experts. The local youth welfare offices support projects and programs that are implemented by independent organizations. An overview of 25 years of violence prevention in a united Germany can be found in the documentation of a symposium and other subsequent events of the German Prevention Day (DPT) and the Alice Salomon School .

See also

literature

  • S. Voß, E. Marks : 25 Violence Prevention in a United Germany - Inventory and Perspectives . Berlin 2016, ISBN 978-3-86460-575-8
  • K. Wahl: Take or hit? Biographies of violent youngsters as the key to an education for tolerance in the family, kindergarten and school. Cornelsen Scriptor, Berlin / Düsseldorf / Mannheim 2007, ISBN 978-3-589-24511-6 .
  • K. Wahl, K. Hess: Perpetrator or victim? Youth violence - causes and prevention. Reinhardt, Munich 2009, ISBN 978-3-497-02037-9 .
  • A. Beelmann, T. Raabe: Dissocial behavior of children and adolescents: manifestations, development, prevention and intervention. Hogrefe, Göttingen 2007.
  • M. Atzenweiler: Criminal violence - and suddenly you're right in the middle of it. vdf Hochschulverlag, Zurich 2006, ISBN 978-3-7281-3022-8 .
  • M. Lüpke, U. Neumann: Violence Prevention 2.0 - Digital Challenges Schueren, Marburg 2010, ISBN 978-3-89472-227-2 .
  • Heero Miketta: Prevention of violence with children and adolescents. The reading book for schools, sports clubs, children and youth institutions. ShoShinBuch, 2007, ISBN 978-3-00-023108-7 .

Web links

Individual evidence

  1. ^ Gudehus, Christian., Christ, Michaela .: Violence: an interdisciplinary manual . Verlag JB Metzler, Stuttgart 2013, ISBN 978-3-476-02411-4 .
  2. ↑ Federal Agency for Civic Education: Structures of prevention work at the federal level | bpb. Retrieved January 16, 2020 .
  3. ↑ - Origins and forms of violence. Retrieved January 16, 2020 (German).
  4. ↑ Do "killer games" have to be banned? November 21, 2006, accessed January 16, 2020 .
  5. ^ Andreas Wilkens: Debate forbidden games: Introduction. Retrieved January 16, 2020 .
  6. ↑ Christian Stöcker, DER SPIEGEL: Violence Debate: Minister calls for a ban on "killer games" - DER SPIEGEL - Netzwelt. Retrieved January 16, 2020 .