Although it is not my favorite magazine, Blackbelt is the default martial arts magazine still in existence. For my tastes, most of their feature articles (not the monthly articles mind you, which I love) are a little shallow, and serve really as an introduction to a subject. Occasionally, there are features that actually provide some new and thought provoking information. One of these articles was recently re-released on the website here. In the August 2011 issue, FBI Analyst Mr. James LeFond, performed a study on behalf of the FBI Academy that was of particular interest to martial artists; conflicts that led to a knockout.
I think we can all agree that, from a self-defense perspective, receiving a knockout is a bad situation to be in because unconsciousness makes defending ourselves difficult. But giving a knockout blow to someone greatly increases the chances of successful self defense. This is why the nature of this study should be of interest to martial artists. Many of us claim to know the “best way” to knock someone out but does your favorite stand up to the harsh light of statistical scrutiny? Let’s look at the results and discuss them.
Methodology
Louis Martin studied fights and wrote about it here on martialjournal.com. Although Martin’s source of information was not as complete as the FBI database, which compiles information on all crimes in the US, his methodology was very similar.
LeFond looks at 1,675 conflicts between 1996 and 2000 that led to a knockout. This means there were, on average, 335 knockouts a year in the US; almost one a day. LeFond breaks down what caused the knockout: what strike was used, who used them, if weapons were involved, etc. If your self-defense goal is to cause a knockout, then it’s worth your time to look at these numbers and learn which factors will help you achieve your goal.
Interesting Findings
I believe these statistics give martial artists a realistic view of what unscripted violence is like. Or, at least, a more measured idea of what can/should occur. On the other hand, there’s a really nice answer to the question “what defenses worked best to protect against a knockout?” One note LaFond makes is that, by the time violence is initiated, removing yourself from the situation (flight he calls it) is possible in only less than half the cases. This eliminates the “just leave” answer that is often given to people. By the time violence is occurring, it may be too late, or it was over half the time. Citing the online article, here are – in order of effectiveness – the most effective defenses to avoid the knockout:
- minimal aggression (pushing, slapping, holding)
- defensive techniques (blocking, ducking, etc.)
- escape and flight
- verbal dissuasion
- serious grappling (throwing, wall slamming, floor fighting)
- brandishing a weapon
- toughness and poise (the ability to take it)
- power striking
To be honest, I’m not exactly sure what LeFond means by “minimal aggression”. I interpret it to be an aggressive action that isn’t striking back with fists. Does that sound right? For martial artists who are self-defense practitioners, it’s good to note that defensive techniques were at least second on the list. To be fair to this list and the article, LaFond does look at the martial art and skill by the person performing the knockout. It doesn’t, however, look at the skill level or martial art studied of those who successfully defended themselves from the knockout. It could be part of his analysis but it wasn’t published in this article.
Conclusion
Many people come into the martial arts with the idea that they will learn self defense. The violent situations described here are close to what they’re imagining; situations where flight is no longer an option. Many martial arts and instructors pay lip service to these ideas and describe them in vague or incomplete terms. However, if the instructor really wants to know what self defense is, and looks like, they should look at all parts of self defense. I credit to Iain Abernethy, who said, “fighting is what happens when your self defense fails.” Lots of self defense systems have parts that should occur and kick in before anyone tries knocking someone out. The stats from LeFond’s article give you some ideas of what happens when those other parts of self defense fail.
I don’t think there’s any way to measure how many fights martial artists don’t get into but that would be the most valuable statistic. What do you think? How well does your preferred method of self-defense stand up to scrutiny? Please let me know by leaving a comment below!
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