Declining violence

New Scientist Oct. 15-21, 2011

"The Better Angels of Our Nature", by Steven Pinker, professor of psychology at Harvard University

Human violence has decreased greatly since prehistoric times.

One cause is government., that is, third-party dispute resolution; courts and police with a monopoly on the legitimate use of force. Everywhere you look for comparisons of life under anarchy and life under government, life under government is less violent. ... In today's failed states, violence goes thru the roofs.

Commerce, trade, and exchange make other people more valuable alive than dead, and mean that people try to anticipate what the other guy needs and wants. ...

Other contributions : The expansion of literacy, journalism, history, science - all the ways in which we see the world from the other guy's point of view.

Feminisation is another reason for the decline. As women are empowered, violence can come down, for a number of reasons. By all measures, men are the more violent gender.

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In regards to the recent decline in violence, despite the recession, it have been noted that since the use of lead has greatly decreased, the amount that babies are exposed to have greatly decreased. Exposure to lead before birth, and during infancy and childhood, increases the likelihood of later impulsive and violent behaviour.

Also, there have been declines of corporal punishment of children.

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