Socio-psychological barriers to peace making

An empirical examination within the Israeli Jewish Society

Bibliographic Data

ID3917544
AuthorsEran Halperin (0000-0002-3379-2935, School of Government, IDC, Herzliya, corresponding author), Daniel Bar-Tal (0000-0001-6971-2303, Tel Aviv University)
Year2011
Volume48
Issue5
Pages637-651
Publication date2011-09-01
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueJournal of Peace Research (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 0022-3433 • E-ISSN: 1460-3578
PublisherSAGE Publications Inc (PUBLISHER)
DOI10.1177/0022343311412642
OpenAlexW2152037762
LanguageEN
Citations received88
References cited71

Socio-psychological barriers play a major role in the continuation of intractable conflicts. They are responsible for the socio-psychological closure that resists and prevents the entertainment of alternative information that could potentially facilitate the acceptance of ideas advancing peacemaking processes. In an attempt to validate a process model that depicts the functioning of the socio-psychological barriers to conflict resolution, an empirical study was conducted among a nationwide representative sample of Jews in Israel, within the context of the Middle Eastern conflict. The reported study utilized a large scale survey, based on a nationwide representative sample of Israeli Jews who were asked to respond to a questionnaire which included the model's selected variables. As hypothesized, the results showed a path leading from general worldviews (e.g. General values, Right Wing Authoritarianism, Implicit theories about groups) to openness to new information and readiness to compromise through the mediation of the conflict-related societal beliefs (e.g. victimhood, delegitimization). These results indicate that closure to new information that may shed new light on both the rival and the conflict emerges as a crucial factor in the maintenance of society members' non-compromising views. The theoretical as well as the applied implications of the findings are discussed

Authoritarianism · Compromise · Context (archaeology) · Empirical research · Geography · Mediation · Openness to experience · Peacemaking · Political science · Politics · Structural equation modeling · Conflict Management and Negotiation · Cultural Differences and Values · Law · Psychology · Social and Intergroup Psychology · Social Psychology

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