Well, they absolutely are self-defense. You could make an argument that they're the most important portion of self-defense. They're just not the aspect of self-defense which is normally addressed in martial arts training.I think that a lot of folks around here consider those other elements you mention (e.g., target hardening, deescalation, lifestyle) to actually BE self defense.
It depends on what you mean by that. If you mean that it's relatively easy to address the elements of self-defense which are relevant to your fighting methods (such as steering away from tactics which limit your situational awareness or mobility or which could lead to legal issues) then I agree. If you mean the totality of subjects like de-escalation, situational awareness, escape and evasion, etc, then I think those could be areas of fairly deep study regardless of your fighting ability.Don't get me wrong. I like this definition, and personally, I think if someone has learned how to fight (in any context), it is relatively simple to address the other elements of self defense.
Yep. Being a great martial artist or a great fighter doesn't necessarily mean you know the first thing about, for example, de-escalation or the legal system. I've picked up a few useful tidbits over the years, but I would never present myself as a subject matter expert on these topics. I try to point my students in the right general direction and try to avoid encouraging behaviors or perspectives which could get them into trouble, but that's about the best I can do with the non-fighting aspects of self-defense.Also, when you say the other aspects are not normally a major part of martial arts training, I would agree and further suggest that there are other... often better... places than a martial arts school to work on those things.