Violence again, polemics again

Last week, our hearts were in our mouths once again due to blood-curdling atrocities. As a society, we were shaken again, saddened again, and struggled helplessly again. Two adolescents, one a high schooler and one a middle schooler, cast themselves as actors in a scene of horror, creating moments of terror. They attacked without blinking, stained the surroundings with blood, killed, and died. 

Why?

When there is living and letting live, why destroy and be destroyed? Why give up when one has not yet known life, when there is so much to live for and so much to nurture, and furthermore, decide to leave by destroying one's surroundings as well? 

After the atrocities that have occurred, there are so many questions that need to be asked and answered. It is not right to go on media channels to engage in polemics or to try to escape the issue by linking it to politics. If two of our young people are knowingly, willingly, and deliberately raiding schools and spreading terror, it means the problem is serious. Instead of pulling the event into the realm of popular discourse with political positioning and trivializing it, we must put our thinking caps on and ponder the problem in all its aspects and with all its depth. The problem has many diverse dimensions, and each one needs to be put on the table and examined in detail.

THE IMPACT OF THE GENERAL SOCIAL CLIMATE

First of all, the general social climate in which the country finds itself must be analyzed. If there is a general state of unhappiness and hopelessness in a society, it becomes difficult for the members of that society to exhibit a positive emotional state. Therefore, it is necessary to analyze the emotional climate dominating society very well, and if there is a problem, to find a solution and take precautions to prevent more advanced problems from occurring. When people have stable living conditions, feel safe, are able to meet basic life needs such as housing and food, have conditions provided for satisfying their pleasure needs, and have no anxiety about the future, etc., the climate dominating the society in general is mild. Consequently, there is no need for individuals to enter into a struggle over existence/non-existence with themselves or others. The famous social psychologist Abraham Maslow analyzes this in detail with the theory of needs he developed.  

THE STORY OF SOCIALIZATION

On the other hand, analyzing the entire process in which an individual is socialized in detail is important for getting to the source of the problem. A person comes into the world almost as an empty box and forms a personality with the code uploads of all the people and environments they interact with, starting from the environment they are born into. Therefore, every individual's socialization story needs to be handled in detail. Starting from the family, the individual's school environment, the character of the education they receive, the people they take as models, and their circle of friends must be analyzed in detail. It should not be forgotten that every personality is a product of the environment in which it is raised. Therefore, if there is someone creating a problem, all the other people who have touched their life have also fed this problem in some way. Thus, delving into the details of the socialization story and wandering through its paths is important for reaching the source of the problem. 

MANAGEMENT OF SOCIAL MEDIA USE

Whenever an act of violence occurs, social media is declared the primary culprit at the first moment. The effects of technology on society and individuals are, of course, indisputable. However, it should not be forgotten that it is we humans who produce technology and direct its operation. It is not right to try to escape the problems we cause and create by associating them with the tools of our own production. Let us leave aside arguments such as banning social media or keeping people away from technology use, and accept that we humans are at the source of the problem. The development and use of technology cannot be stopped. Bans, etc., are unimaginable in a world where we are in the age of digital technology. And if they were, the results could be much more dire. Therefore, we should stop talking about bans and think about methods of use. Social media use is a management task. It is not even possible to keep an individual born into digital technologies away from them. However, it is necessary to teach the ways and methods of using digital technologies, especially tools and devices that circulate information, from childhood in the family and at school. For this, on the one hand, adult education focused on technology use must be planned and disseminated to raise awareness among families. On the other hand, it is essential to make plans for providing digital technology literacy education in schools very seriously, starting from kindergarten, or even from daycare centers.  Since our children will continue their lives in this world, it is necessary to strengthen their adaptation to the world to make life more enjoyable, more productive, and more livable for them. This should be done not with bans, but by correctly planning and correctly teaching methods of use. 

If our children learn the pleasure of winning, existing, creating, and multiplying, rather than losing, being destroyed, and destroying, they can build a happier life. For this, a great responsibility falls on the entire society, public authorities, and all institutions and organizations. Let us stop dealing with problems with a reductionist approach, looking at them from a single dimension, and blaming each other; let us focus on the solution together.