Essay
Ontological security paper SCGW
- Course
- Institution
Graded with a 7.6: analysis with Atlas.TI of the Christchurch shooting manifest in the context of ontological security for the course Security Challenges in a Globalizing World
[Show more]
2 reviews
By: akinloluakinfenwa • 1 month ago
By: egkolman2000 • 1 year ago
Seller
Follow
annaduperron
Reviews received
Content preview
DRIVEN BY INSECURITYCan the concept of ontological security explain the
motivations of the Christchurch shootings in 2019?
s2309866
S2309866@vuw.leidenuniv.nl
Security Challenges in a Globalizing World
Dr. G.M. van Buuren
23-10-2022
Wordcount: 3294
,Inhoudsopgave
Introduction............................................................................................................................................. 2
Theoretical Framework ........................................................................................................................... 2
Ontological security ............................................................................................................................. 2
A stable sense of home ................................................................................................................... 3
Optimistic view of the future .......................................................................................................... 3
Having basic trust in one’s community and political and societal institutions ............................... 3
Ontological insecurity .......................................................................................................................... 4
Distrust in one’s community and institutions ................................................................................. 4
Sense of a lost home ....................................................................................................................... 4
Pessimistic view of the future ......................................................................................................... 4
Methodology ........................................................................................................................................... 5
Operationalization ................................................................................................................................... 5
Analysis .................................................................................................................................................... 7
Conclusion ............................................................................................................................................... 8
References ............................................................................................................................................... 8
Appendix A ............................................................................................................................................ 10
Appendix B ............................................................................................................................................ 18
1
, Introduction
On the 15th of March 2019, a young man called Brenton Tarrant started a Facebook live with
the words “let’s get this party started”. While listening to pop music he drove to the Al Noor Mosque
in Christchurch, New Zealand. His car was loaded with five firearms. He parked the car, took one of
his weapons, and killed 51 people who were at the Al Noor Mosque that day, 41 were injured (Ganor,
2020).
Before his actions Tarrant published a manifest titled “The Great Replacement” where he explains his
extremist ideologies and motivations for the attack. This paper aims to research if feelings of
ontological insecurity where present with Tarrant and could therefore perhaps explain the attack.
The research question therefore is: “to what extent can the Christchurch-shootings be explained by
the perpetrator’s sense of ontological insecurity, based on his manifest The Great Replacement?”
Ontological security can be described as “a security of being, a sense of confidence and trust that the
world is what it appears to be” (Kinnvall, 2004). This paper will focus on how one can go from feeling
ontological secure to feeling ontological insecure by looking at multiple drivers of ontological security
and applying those to the manifest.
In the theoretical framework the concept of ontological security will be further explained based on
relevant literature, out of this literature three drivers of ontological insecurity are distilled. How
these drivers are then applied to the manifest is explained in the methodology and
operationalization section. In the analysis the application of the drivers to the manifest is discussed,
followed by a conclusion where the findings are summarized and an answer to the research question
is given as well as a critical note on the current literature on ontological security.
Theoretical Framework
Ontological security
Ontological security was first conceptualised by R.D. Laing, who introduced the concept of
ontological security and ontological insecurity in his project The Divided Self, which aim was to
conceptualize an existentialist approach to psychoanalysis and to explain psychosis and schizophrenia
(Laing, 1965; Rossdale, 2015).
Anthony Giddens applies a sociological lens to Laing’s insights. He argues that in the context of
ontological security, the word security does not refer to “classic” security such as immediate danger,
crimes, war, survival; it refers to the “security as a being,” it is a political, social, and mental
construction. Ontological security is about the ability of people to give meaning to their lives, have a
fundamental sense of safety in the world and be free from existential anxiety (Giddens, 1991). These
existential anxieties are concerned with the awareness of the individual’s ultimate meaningless
existence and mortality (Kinnvall & Mitzen, 2020). Existential anxieties are based on an undeniably
true fear: our individual existence is meaningless, and we will all die, therefore an individual can never
feel fully ontological secure, as mortality and meaninglessness are always present (Kinnvall & Mitzen,
2020).
fundamental to the sense of ontological security are stability, routines, and self-identity. Having basic
trust, confidence, and optimism in the future. The belief that said narratives and live will work out in
2
The benefits of buying summaries with Stuvia:
Guaranteed quality through customer reviews
Stuvia customers have reviewed more than 700,000 summaries. This how you know that you are buying the best documents.
Quick and easy check-out
You can quickly pay through credit card or Stuvia-credit for the summaries. There is no membership needed.
Focus on what matters
Your fellow students write the study notes themselves, which is why the documents are always reliable and up-to-date. This ensures you quickly get to the core!
Frequently asked questions
What do I get when I buy this document?
You get a PDF, available immediately after your purchase. The purchased document is accessible anytime, anywhere and indefinitely through your profile.
Satisfaction guarantee: how does it work?
Our satisfaction guarantee ensures that you always find a study document that suits you well. You fill out a form, and our customer service team takes care of the rest.
Who am I buying these notes from?
Stuvia is a marketplace, so you are not buying this document from us, but from seller annaduperron. Stuvia facilitates payment to the seller.
Will I be stuck with a subscription?
No, you only buy these notes for $8.15. You're not tied to anything after your purchase.
Can Stuvia be trusted?
4.6 stars on Google & Trustpilot (+1000 reviews)
62555 documents were sold in the last 30 days
Founded in 2010, the go-to place to buy study notes for 14 years now