A terrorist leader has recruited new volunteers and is addressing them. He tells them that their mission will "eliminate" many people but that they would be serving a higher purpose. He explains that their group's struggle depends on martyrs such as themselves. He goes on to say that, their victims belong to a lesser class of people and refers to them with an insulting ethnic slur. He declares that they deserve to be eliminated. The new volunteers not only agree to take part in a suicide mission, they are happy to have been chosen. By telling the recruits that their victims are a lesser class of people and calling them an insulting name, the leader is using which method of cognitive restructuring?

Question

Quizplus · Accepted Answer

By referring to the victims as a lesser class of people and using an insulting ethnic slur, the leader is dehumanizing them. This process makes it psychologically easier for the recruits to carry out violence against these individuals by stripping away their humanity and reducing empathy.

A Terrorist Leader Has Recruited New Volunteers and Is Addressing