The Psychological Torture Of Mock Execution

A type of genuine torture

(Public domain)

For centuries, mock execution was a strategy employed by captors to torture and extract information from their victims. Mock execution is a tactic by which a person is made to believe that they, or someone close to them, is about to be executed. Mock execution goes beyond a simple threat. It is a whole production. Despite the psychological effects of such a traumatic event, it is something that is rarely talked about in history.

Mock executions have been taking place for centuries, with examples stretching into the present day. It was a favorite tactic of states such as Imperialist Russia and the Soviet Union as well as terrorist groups like ISIL. Even waterboarding could be considered as a tactic adjacent to mock execution as it stimulates the parts of the brain that make someone feel as though they are dying or close to death.

Mock execution was a way to mentally torture a person in conjunction with or instead of physical torture. It was used to control morale and extract information from terrified prisoners. The methods have differed throughout history, but the goals and results have largely been the same.

The Methods

Mock execution is effective when it is believable. In order to make a mock execution believable, all…