Skip to content
You are not logged in |Login  
     
Limit search to available items
Record:   Prev Next
Resources
More Information
Bestseller
BestsellerE-book
Author Kearns, Erin M., author.

Title Tortured logic : why some Americans support the use of torture in counterterrorism / Erin M. Kearns and Joseph K. Young.

Publication Info. New York : Columbia University Press, [2020]

Item Status

Description 1 online resource (x, 318 pages) : illustrations.
text file
Series Columbia studies in terrorism and irregular warfare
Columbia studies in terrorism and irregular warfare.
Bibliography Includes bibliographical references and index.
Summary "Experts in the intelligence community say that torture is ineffective. Yet much of the public appears unconvinced: surveys show that nearly half of Americans think that torture can be acceptable for counterterrorism purposes. Why do people persist in supporting torture-and can they be persuaded to change their minds? In Tortured Logic, Erin M. Kearns and Joseph K. Young draw upon a novel series of group experiments to understand how and why the average citizen might come to support the use of torture techniques. They find evidence that when torture is depicted as effective in the media, people are more likely to approve of it. Their analysis weighs variables such as the ethnicity of the interrogator and the suspect; the salience of one's own mortality; and framing by experts. Kearns and Young also examine who changes their opinions about torture and how, demonstrating that only some individuals have fixed views while others have more malleable beliefs. They argue that efforts to reduce support for torture should focus on convincing those with fluid views that torture is ineffective. The book features interviews with experienced interrogators and professionals working in the field to contextualize its findings. Bringing empirical rigor to a fraught topic, Tortured Logic has important implications for understanding public perceptions of counterterrorism strategy"-- Provided by publisher.
Contents Intro -- Table of Contents -- Acknowledgments -- Introduction: What Impacts Public Perception of Torture in Counterterrorism? -- 1. Media and Perceptions of Torture -- 2. Fear, Death, and TV -- 3. Context Matters? -- 4. Elite Cues, Identity, and Efficacy -- Conclusion: Torture, Terrorism, and the Future -- Appendix -- Notes -- Bibliography -- Index
Local Note eBooks on EBSCOhost EBSCO eBook Subscription Academic Collection - North America
Subject Torture -- United States -- Public opinion.
Torture.
United States.
Public opinion.
Torture -- Government policy -- United States.
Terrorism -- United States -- Prevention.
Terrorism.
Torture -- Government policy.
POLITICAL SCIENCE / Security (National & International).
POLITICAL SCIENCE / Terrorism.
Terrorism -- Prevention.
Added Author Young, Joseph K., author.
Other Form: Print version: Kearns, Erin M.. Tortured logic New York : Columbia University Press, [2020] 9780231188968 (DLC) 2020000774
ISBN 9780231548090 electronic book
0231548095 electronic book
9780231188968 hardcover
9780231188975 paperback