Evidence of genocidal intent is rarely overtly available. Prosecutors arguably avoid prosecuting the crime of genocide because of its too-high evidentiary threshold. This paper argues that psychology, linguistics, and biology provide some of the tools that courts should revert to in the proof of the dolus specialis. Every genocide is characterised by dehumanisation. There is an intrinsic connection between the génocidaire’s understanding of the victims as dehumanised ‘others’ and the intent to destroy a group. Social psychology has shown that the perpetrator sets apart the victim group as inferior, subhuman, and a threat to the in-group. Dehumanising discourse exposes the perpetrators’ understanding and ideologies and makes the victim group discernible. Linguistic research reveals the significance of metaphors for dehumanisation and intergroup hostility. Lastly, research on bio-signals such as heart rate, breathing, skin conductance response or eeg can assist in measuring the impact of dehumanisation and provide the courts with yet another tool to prove genocidal intent. Through recourse to a palette of conceptual and theoretical approaches, this paper provides an account of the ways in which a dark constellation of metaphor, dehumanising ideology, and psychological othering coalesce to form genocidal intent.

种族灭绝意图的证据很少公开可用。检察官可以说是避免起诉种族灭绝罪，因为它的证据门槛太高。本文认为，心理学、语言学和生物学提供了法院在证明特殊性时应使用的一些工具。每一次种族灭绝都以非人性化为特征。种族灭绝之间存在内在联系将受害者理解为非人性化的“其他人”，并意图摧毁一个群体。社会心理学表明，肇事者将受害者群体区分为低人一等、非人，并对群体内的人构成威胁。非人性化的话语暴露了肇事者的理解和意识形态，并使受害者群体可辨认。语言研究揭示了非人化和群体间敌意的隐喻的重要性。最后，研究心率、呼吸、皮肤电导反应或脑电图等生物信号可以帮助衡量非人化的影响，并为法院提供另一种证明种族灭绝意图的工具。通过诉诸概念和理论方法的调色板，本文提供了一个隐喻、非人化意识形态和心理他者的黑暗星座结合形成种族灭绝意图的方式。