Techniques of neutralization as emotion-regulating mechanisms: the role of emotions in violent extremism

In “Techniques of Neutralization: A Theory of Delinquency”, Sykes and Matza (1957) want to make sense of why men violate the norms in which they believe. Their argument was that much crime seems to be based on “justifications for deviance that are seen as valid by the delinquent but not by the legal system or the society at large” (Sykes & Matza, 1957: 666). These justifications can be understood as techniques of neutralization; they weaken the effectiveness of social control, they allow offenders to mitigate feelings of guilt and shame so that they feel less restrained to engage in criminal behavior. In an ongoing doctoral study we found that offenders seem to apply neutralization techniques to justify their behavior prior to acts of violent extremism. How exactly neutralization techniques weaken social controls and facilitate norm violations has remained somewhat underdeveloped in Sykes & Matza’s work. In this paper we develop their suggestion that neutralization techniques should be understood in terms of emotion-regulating mechanisms. We present key findings about the role of emotions in violent extremism and discuss the implications for further research in this field.