The Epistemology of Violence: Understanding the Root Causes of Violence in Schooling

This book provides an in-depth, multidisciplinary framework and case-study analysis for understanding the root causes of violence in schooling. Drawing on critical theory, psychology, neuroscience and learning theory, the author provides a holistic analysis of how ¿violent epistemology¿ and the ¿non-conducive circumstances¿ that it produces can be seen to be at the roots of violence in societies and social institutions such as schools. Chapter 1 outlines how current and historical theories of violence, and interventions based on them, have failed due to their inability to properly conceptualise the root causes of violence. Chapters 2 addresses this by providing a new epistemic and methodological framework for studying violence. Chapters 3 and 4 then demonstrate how violence can be best conceptualised as a problem of specifically ¿violent¿ epistemology and the ¿non-conducive social circumstances¿ that it fosters. Chapters 5-7 demonstrate in practice how violent epistemology results in multiple manifestations of violence at the global, national, local, and ultimately classroom level. Chapter 8 concludes the book by presenting an early conceptualisation of ¿non-violent¿ epistemology, and what fostering this might look like in practice.