The 5th Dimension of Self-Defense focuses on the violence dynamics of confrontations. The 5th Dimension expands upon violence as being either Social Violence or Asocial Violence, and in some cases, a combination of the two.
In the lower Paradigms, the causes violence and the intent of the aggressor are immaterial. An attack is an attack. All violence for the most part is assumed to be Asocial. But, a closer examination reveals that most violence is in fact Social in nature, and is used to obtain Social goals.
Asocial violence is less common, but predatorial in nature.
Here is Rory Miller on Social and Asocial Violence.
Violence Dynamics and More About Violence Dynamics
Tim Larkin on Social Confrontation vs Asocial Violence:
- Part 1
- Part 2
- Part 3
MacYoung on Kinds of Violence.
The 5th Dimension Paradigm further complicates the issue of self-defense because it brings new aspects to consider.
The 1st aspect is that if you are engaging in Social Violence, then you are an active participant in the confrontation. Thus you share some responsibility for it's creation and outcome.
The 2nd aspect is that if you are targeted for Asocial violence, then what you know about Social violence will not help you. In fact, it is highly disadvantageous to bring Social violence "rules" to a Asocial violence situation.
The 3rd aspect is that if your 1st Dimensional physical skills are designed for Social Violence, than using them in a Asocial Violence situation can lead to your demise.
The 5th Dimensional Paradigm illustrates that understanding why a person is exhibiting aggression towards you is paramount to determining how the aggression is ultimately handled.