ABSTRACT
Scholarship on genocide has advanced on many fronts since its inception and we have generated admirable amounts of theoretical ideas and empirical data. A key finding of perpetrator research thus far is that - contrary to their presentation in the mass media and in popular depictions - these men and women are ordinary people, extraordinary only in how they act, to paraphrase James Waller. Unsurprisingly, in perpetrator narratives of why they participate, coercion plays an important role as well. In fact, perpetrators often attempt to portray their participation as a "choiceless decision", borrowing the term from Chris Coulter. One of the key motivations for people's participation in genocide has been shown to be social dynamics between peers in the perpetrator group. Two main dynamics can be differentiated: conformity to the anticipated expectations of one's peers by the individual, and active pressure by these peers on the individual.
