Stereotypes and Prejudice in Conflict

Abstract

During the last twenty years, a discernible increase in the analysis of stereotypes and the role they assume during conflicts has occurred, with significant interest emanating from the field of social psychology. For the authors of Stereotypes and Prejudice in Conflict: Representations of Arabs in Israeli Jewish Society, years of research have culminated in a publication that unflinchingly explores such diverse topics as delegitimization tactics and unity as well as the development of perceptions among pre-schoolers. Daniel Bar-Tal, a professor in Tel Aviv University’s Psychology Department, is the author of several notable works on the issue, including Social Psychology of Intergroup Conflict (Springer-Verlag: 1998) and How Children Understand War and Peace (Jossey Bass: 1999). Likewise, Yona Teichman, a clinical psychologist at Tel Aviv University, brings a level of expertise honed from extensive research on the development and application of an implicit, free-response measure of social representations based on the systematic analysis of human figure drawings. Through this dynamic, they strive to contribute to future peace endeavors by prompting the critical analysis of one’s own society and the processes that impede conflict resolution, while encouraging new perspectives that will end the violent cycles that sustain conflict. From a strong opening chapter, the authors negotiate through twelve chapters adeptly, the most notable of which include chapter 4, “Representation of Arabs in Public Discourse”; chapter 5, “Representation of Arabs in School Textbooks”; and chapter 10, “Studies with Schoolchildren, Adolescents, and Young Adults.” All of these chapters are supported by a plethora of tables comprising generalization, characterization, and negativity; color ...