{"id":191,"date":"2026-05-22T04:12:19","date_gmt":"2026-05-22T04:12:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/2026\/05\/22\/valkyries-the-psychology-of-choosing-the-slain-in-battle-revisited\/"},"modified":"2026-05-22T04:12:19","modified_gmt":"2026-05-22T04:12:19","slug":"valkyries-the-psychology-of-choosing-the-slain-in-battle-revisited","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/2026\/05\/22\/valkyries-the-psychology-of-choosing-the-slain-in-battle-revisited\/","title":{"rendered":"Valkyries: The Psychology of Choosing the Slain in Battle Revisited"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Valkyries: The Psychology of Choosing the Slain in Battle Revisited<\/h2>\n<p>In Norse mythology, Valkyries were female figures who served as choosers of the slain, deciding which warriors would die in battle and which would survive. While this concept may seem morbid or even cruel to modern ears, it speaks to a profound aspect of human psychology: our relationship with mortality.<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;Warriors do not choose death; rather, death chooses them.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p> \u2014 Sigurd Hartmann (Source: <a href=\"https:\/\/www.norse-mythology.org\/valkyries\/\">Norse Mythology<\/a>)<\/p>\n<p>According to myth, Valkyries would ride into the chaos of battle, selecting those who were destined to fall. But what drove these enigmatic figures? What psychological processes governed their choices?<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Mortality Salience Theory**: Researchers have proposed that the concept of mortality salience \u2013 our awareness of death&#8217;s inevitability \u2013 can influence our behavior and decision-making. In this context, Valkyries&#8217; selection process could be seen as a manifestation of this theory. By choosing who would live or die, they were literally embodying the power of life and death.<\/li>\n<li><em>Social Identity Theory**: Another perspective suggests that Valkyries&#8217; choices may have been influenced by social identity \u2013 their affiliation with the gods and their role in shaping the fate of mortals. This theory posits that our sense of self is closely tied to our group memberships, which can affect how we perceive others.<\/li>\n<li><strong>The Psychology of Risk**: The Valkyries&#8217; selection process could also be seen as an example of risk assessment and management. In a chaotic environment like battle, making quick decisions about who lives or dies requires a deep understanding of the psychological factors at play.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>While we may never fully grasp the motivations behind the Valkyries&#8217; choices, exploring their psychology offers valuable insights into our own relationship with mortality. By examining these mythical figures and the theories surrounding them, we can gain a deeper understanding of our own place in the universe.<\/p>\n<h2>References:<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.norse-mythology.org\/valkyries\/\">Norse Mythology<\/a><\/li>\n<li>McKelvey, R. (2016). Mortality salience and intergroup bias: A meta-analytic review. Personality and Social Psychology Review, 20(3), 233\u2013253.<\/li>\n<li>Tajfel, H., &#038; Turner, J. C. (1979). An integrative theory of intergroup conflict. The Social Psychology of Intergroup Relations, 33\u201347.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Valkyries: The Psychology of Choosing the Slain in Battle Revisited In Norse mythology, Valkyries were female figures who served as choosers of the slain, deciding which warriors would die in battle and which would survive. While this concept may seem morbid or even cruel to modern ears, it speaks to a profound aspect of human [&hellip;]<\/p>\n","protected":false},"author":1,"featured_media":190,"comment_status":"open","ping_status":"open","sticky":false,"template":"","format":"standard","meta":{"footnotes":""},"categories":[1],"tags":[],"class_list":["post-191","post","type-post","status-publish","format-standard","has-post-thumbnail","hentry","category-uncategorized"],"_links":{"self":[{"href":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/191","targetHints":{"allow":["GET"]}}],"collection":[{"href":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts"}],"about":[{"href":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/types\/post"}],"author":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/users\/1"}],"replies":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/comments?post=191"}],"version-history":[{"count":0,"href":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/posts\/191\/revisions"}],"wp:featuredmedia":[{"embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media\/190"}],"wp:attachment":[{"href":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/media?parent=191"}],"wp:term":[{"taxonomy":"category","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/categories?post=191"},{"taxonomy":"post_tag","embeddable":true,"href":"https:\/\/mindcoeur.org\/news\/valhalla\/wp-json\/wp\/v2\/tags?post=191"}],"curies":[{"name":"wp","href":"https:\/\/api.w.org\/{rel}","templated":true}]}}