Vietnam is widely seen as one of Asia’s most stable nations. Many Vietnamese feel fortunate to live in peace.

Politically, that perception holds true. Vietnam shows little sign of disorder. But stability does not mean society is unbroken.

Viral outrage

In recent months, social media has been flooded with violent clips. Brawls in apartment complexes. A female MMA fighter striking back at a male attacker. Each incident quickly sparked nationwide fury.

In early September, a 50-second clip spread across Facebook and TikTok. It showed a male student standing in class, yanking his teacher’s hair, and shouting insults. Within a day, the video drew millions of views.

The backlash was instant. Thousands demanded his expulsion. Many called for criminal charges. Others cursed his family. Few waited for context.

From violence to shaming

There is no excuse for violence. Yet instead of reflecting on deeper causes — education, emotional control, or media literacy — many Vietnamese turned to another form of violence: public shaming and collective bullying.

The reactions went far beyond justified anger. They were aggressive, cruel, and at times chilling. A teenager became the target of nationwide condemnation.

Psychology of outrage

Psychologist Tran Thanh Nam of Vietnam National University explained that anonymity online encourages extreme behavior and reduces accountability.

At a deeper level, incidents like a student attacking his teacher expose gaps in education. Schools still emphasize rote learning while neglecting skills such as dialogue, conflict resolution, and emotional regulation.

As education scholar Ho Ngoc Dai warned, “Schooling must teach children how to live in society, not just stuff them with knowledge.”

Without these tools, small conflicts quickly spiral into violence.

Hate speech online

A survey by Vietnam’s Program for Internet & Society found that 78 percent of young people have encountered hate speech online.

Insults, threats, and slurs are now a reflex of the digital crowd. International studies show platforms amplify outrage. The more shocking the content, the more engagement it brings — and the more profit it yields.

Choose dialogue

To resist being swept into mob outrage, three practices help.

• Keep an emotional distance. If news instantly makes you furious or gleeful, you are being manipulated.
• Pause before reacting. A short clip never tells the whole story.
• Weigh its importance. Will it matter in 10 minutes, 10 months, or 10 years?

If social media remains a space for judgment and ridicule, it will corrode trust and cripple society’s ability to resolve conflict.

Dialogue allows anger to be voiced without turning into violence. It lets different sides present their truths. It creates space for solutions that punishment alone cannot achieve.

Safeguard for peace

For young Vietnamese, this means asking questions before judging, listening even to people they dislike, and resisting the urge to share in anger.

It also means schools and families must teach dialogue as a skill, on par with math or literature. Only then will the next generation be equipped to defuse conflict rather than inflame it.

As Charlie Kirk warned, “When dialogue is no longer possible, violence begins.”

• Alex Hoang is a lecturer at Keiser University Vietnam. A Spanish graduate and a postgraduate in Economics he is a media collaborator for Jesuits Media in Vietnam and writes at UCANews.com
• First published in UCANews.com. Republished with permission.