According to Shuki Cohen, a psychology professor at John Jay College of Criminal Justice in New York, one of the driving factors behind political violence is nihilism, "just a vague doomsday mentality of burn it all down and go out in a blaze of glory." Cohen said a common trait of political violence is "learned helpless" - a sense that our government is unable to address their concerns, whether that concern is the moral failings of society, changing demographics, wealth disparity, or some other grievance.
