The Hugo Valentin Lecture 2013: Professor Ervin Staub

The Eleventh Hugo Valentin Lecture, titled Perpetrator, Passive and Active Bystanders in Mass Violence, was held by professor of Psychology Ervin Staub, University of Massachusetts at Amherst, USA. Staub discussed the dynamics of violence, the emergence of both perpetrators and passive bystanders, but also what he calls active bystanders, who resist violence or endanger themselves to save the lives of others.

Staub, who is a specialist in the psychology of violence and conflict, has lifelong experience in field research, educational efforts and interventions in connection to violence, peace and reconciliation from a number of regions around the world. Among his most important publications are The Roots of Evil: The Origins of Genocide and Other Group Violence (1989), The Psychology of Good and Evil: Why Children, Adults and Groups Help and Harm Others (2003), and Overcoming Evil: Genocide, Violent Conflict and Terrorism (2011).