The Normalization of Violence Among Young People: A Growing Concern
We are faced with a disturbing trend of violence among young people, where responding with aggression, even for trivial reasons, is increasingly being perceived as a sign of strength and identity. According to psychiatrist Claudio Mencacci, this phenomenon is a “cover” that hides a lack of true identity. Mencacci’s interpretation comes in response to a recent incident in La Spezia, where an 18-year-old stabbed his peer at school after an argument over a girl.
The Role of Social Media and Emotional Fragility
From social media to videos, there is a rampant tendency to normalize violence as the first and simplest response. Mencacci notes that young people today show a growing fragility and inability to manage emotional relationships, confrontations, and relational contrasts. Managing relationships with violence is instead much simpler and more direct. The increasing use of knives as a weapon is also not accidental, as it becomes a “costume” and a symbol of self-protection and power, facilitated by its immediacy of use.
The normalization of violence, which becomes the “new identity” in various youth groups, implies another aspect: the inability to see the disproportion of one’s response compared to the situation that determined it. This is why a peer is stabbed, perhaps for a simple look at a girl. Mencacci defines this condition as “emotional dysregulation and increased impulsiveness also determined by living increasingly within contexts, real or virtual, under the banner of violence”.
The Need for Emotional Education and Relationship Courses
For many young people, being violent also responds to a system of exhibition, and there is almost a fascination exerted by this sub-culture of the knife, the baby gangs, and the group. In this context, “the inhibitory brakes thus disappear”. Mencacci warns that it is difficult to indicate an ‘antidote’ for a change of direction, because the problem is cultural. However, he suggests that introducing relationship and emotional education courses in schools could be a concrete initiative to address this issue. It is essential to educate young people in comparison and conflict management, as this would help recover the ability to manage conflicts and interpersonal relationships that the new generations have lost.
By incorporating emotional education and relationship courses into school curricula, we can help young people develop the skills they need to navigate complex social situations and manage their emotions in a healthy way. As Mencacci concludes, “only in this way will it be possible to recover the ability to manage conflicts and interpersonal relationships that the new generations have lost, masking this enormous lack with a strength and decision which is however only an appearance”. For more information on this topic, you can read the full article Here.