Several of the US soldiers involved in the Iraqi prisoner abuse scandal insist that they were following orders from military and civilian interrogator. Yang Xia, a psychology researcher at Peking Union Medical University, says that if that is true, it might be a new kind of psychological tactic employed by the US military.

The soldiers used a variety of physical and mental techniques to abuse and humiliate Iraqi prisoners while other US soldiers stood by laughing. They took pictures and videos to record the whole process, and then showed them to other captives.

The US military interrogators want to get more information from these captives by taking advantage of their reaction. At the same time, those pictures and videos might discourage Iraqi resistance. Such techniques can be very effective. In order to protect themselves from similar abuse, some prisoners would confess.

Zhang Liyi, director of the People's Liberation Army's Center for Psychological Disease Control and Prevention, believes that the abusive behavior may result from the abnormal psychology of the US servicemembers involved. As the situation in Iraq drags on, conflicts between Iraqi civilians and the US military are aggravated. The number of US soldiers dead and wounded continues to rise, and the troops may become demoralized. Some US soldiers may vent their frustrations and fears on the prisoners.

Sun Changling, an expert from the China National Institute for Education Research, agrees that abnormal psychology may be the root of the problem, but perhaps for a different reason. Sun believes they may have obtained psychological pleasure and satisfaction from abusing their captives.

Sun points out, however, that the excited soldiers who were ready for action at the beginning of the war and who thought they had won it in such a short time have changed with the reality of the past year. They are anxious, depressed and disappointed in their government. They cannot complain to their commanders, so the Iraqi prisoners become objects on which to air their grievances.

Xiao Feng, director of the Peking Huiyuan Psychology and Education Research Center, points out that the soldiers are bored and looking for some fun. They regard themselves as the victors in Iraq, and show their contempt for their captives physically abusing and humiliating them. Because they needed to continue ratcheting up the level of abuse to feel the thrill, they resorted to sexual violence.

The photos "commemorating" their activities in Iraq indicate that the soldiers may be proud of their behavior and feel that it is something they can show off to their friends, says Yang Xia. Almost in the same way we may take photos at scenic spots when we are traveling, the soldiers may have felt that they could impress people with mementos of their experience in Iraq.

The pictures clearly show that the soldiers were enjoying the sexual abuse of Iraqi detainees. There are no signs of any internal moral struggle.

Yang Xia says that the cultural background and values of the Americans must be considered when evaluating these actions. Individuality and personal worth are emphasized, which may lead to behavior that is egotistical and devoid of empathy. 

The US soldiers lead comfortable lives in times of peace, but everything changed when they stepped onto Iraqi soil. "Entertainment" comes in the form of firefights and explosions; the risk of death or injury is a constant companion. Under such conditions, the soldiers resorted to violent abuse to relieve the overwhelming stress.

Professor Li Meijin, of the Chinese People's Public Security University thinks the soldiers may well have received encouragement in their behavior from outside sources, and that encouragement fanned the flames of depravity that broke out during the war.

"We can't call it sexual perversion, strictly speaking, or sexual abuse," says Li, explaining that those behaviors are motivated by the need for violence in order to achieve sexual satisfaction. The US soldiers, she says, did not appear to be seeking their own sexual satisfaction despite the apparently sexual nature of the abuse.

Li also points out that this is not a case of a few isolated incidents committed by one or two soldiers, but that by many US soldiers participated in it over time. That indicates that it may have originated somewhere higher in the chain of command. Several of the accused soldiers have said just that.

Moreover, there is a tendency for an individual to lose some of his or her usual self-restraint when entering an unfamiliar environment. Aggravated by the loss of civility and self-consciousness that often accompanies participation in a collective activity, the soldiers would have been prone to behave in ways that were far outside the norm for them.

Li says that there is a long history of links between war and sexual misconduct. The soldiers are in a group outside that of larger society, and they are usually restrained and under close watch at all times. The chaos of war might provide an opportunity for escape from the accustomed confinement.

The abuse of Iraqi prisoners may do lasting damage to everyone involved. The abused prisoners may be filled with contempt for themselves, anxious and possibly depressed for the rest of their lives. Some may commit suicide. The experience will also be a shadow in the minds of the American soldiers that will influence them long after the war is over, in the same way that Vietnam veterans and World War Two Japanese soldiers were haunted by nightmares decades after they had returned home.

Li Meijin, a graduate of the Philosophy Department of the Renmin University of China, now directs a master's tutoring group at the People's Public Security University. Li is a professor of criminal psychology and her main fields cover criminal psychology, psychological representation of criminals, juvenile crime prevention and organized crime.

Yang Xia is an assistant researcher at Peking Union Medical College, a member of the China Mental Hygiene Association and director of the Beijing Psychology Association.

(China.org.cn May 17, 2004)