Psychologist: Atmosphere in Serbia Makes Possibility of Civil War

Bojana Bodroza (YouTube screenshot)

Psychologist Bojana Bodroza said on Jan. 17 that she "couldn't imagine a scenario" where the Serbian Progressive Party would peacefully "vacate the throne," hence civil war is "not impossible."

"I'm afraid that they won't stop at leveraging their manipulation of the emotions of the people for violence, maybe even civil war, if they believe it will keep them in power," Bodroza, a docent at the Faculty of Philosophy in Novi Sad, told Al Jazeera in an interview.

Bodroza also said that the purpose of the ruling party's propaganda was to instill in people "a sense of constant threat to their own and the entire state's security."

"Fear leads to the polarization of opinion, which includes 'doubling down' on one's own positions and viewing everyone who doesn't share your values as the enemy. Divisions into us and them always means that 'we' are valuable and morally right, while 'they' are evil, immoral and acting in bad faith. It is this oversimplified and distorted image that serves as the justification for violence," Bodroza said.