Dr. Wong, an internationally recognized expert on cross-cultural psychology, comments that “Cho Seung-Hui had experienced difficulties common to many new immigrants. These include acculturation stress, a language barrier, poverty and discrimination. The cumulative stress of these risk factors coupled with problems of mental illness and personal grievances might have pushed Cho over the edge.”
According to Wong, every society has its underclass – the poor, the mentally ill, the “sweat shop” foreign workers, and the new immigrants who cannot speak proper English. They tend to be talked down to and neglected. These powerless and voiceless people often fall through the cracks in our systems.
The Virginia Tech killing might have been averted, if Seung-Hui’s parents had had the money to provide him with proper medical care and to protect him from the harsh realities which he had long endured.
“There can be no justification for the evil of mass killing,” Wong emphasized, “but most new Asian immigrants can understand what Cho had gone through and why he snapped.” Cho had simply had too many bad breaks:
He had been transplanted to a totally new environment and separated from the usual support systems; diagnosed as an autistic child without being given any treatment; mocked and humiliated at school because of his deficient English; deprived of a normal social life at a time when peer relationships mean everything; insulted by rude customers at his parents’ laundry shop; overshadowed by an academically superior sister; expelled from his creative writing class; rejected by objects of his romantic interests, detained and diagnosed as mentally ill….
This relentless litany of rejection, failure and humiliation is sufficient to crush any person. When all these negative life experiences were mixed with Cho’s mental conditions, we had a disaster in the making. In a shame-based Korean culture, parents tend to keep quiet about family problems, thus making it less likely that their children receive timely help from social and mental health agencies.
As a result, Cho was like an active volcano ready to explode anytime. He had given out many warning signals, but no one had taken the trouble to enter into his innermost dark places of pain and rage and provide culturally-sensitive interventions.
“His murderous act was one of anger turned outward, while his suicide was anger turned inward. It was also a final act of defiance; one he believed would restore his manhood and honour after years of feeling helpless and humiliated. From the writings and videos he left behind, it is clear that in his twisted logic, he saw himself as taking a last stand and dying as a hero.”
What can we do to prevent similar tragic incidents? “On the individual level, caring individuals and professional counsellors can often make a dramatic difference,”
“Finally, on the societal level, we need to make medical and psychological services available to all who cannot afford them,” Dr. Wong adds. “We need to address social issues of poverty, injustice and discrimination. Racism will always be with us, but at least we need to be able to recognize it and combat it whenever and wherever it raises its ugly head.”
Dr. Wong says a caring society will ensure no child is left behind, and no one is denied a fair chance to succeed. If we extend justice and compassion to all, regardless of ethnicity, disability and other minority status, we will reduce the likelihood of another Virginia Tech incident.
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Paul T.P. Wong, Ph.D., C.Psy., is Professor of Psychology at Tyndale University College, and a Registered Clinical Psychologist in Ontario. He has more than three decades of experience working with international students and Asian immigrants. He is available for interviews and comment regarding Cho’s mental condition and the Virginia Tech massacre. For more information on Wong’s psychological profile of Cho, please visit his website: http://www.meaning.ca
Contact:
Rachel Collins, Marketing Assistant
Tyndale University College & Seminary
25 Ballyconnor Court, Toronto ON M2M 4B3
416-226-6620 ex. 2175
