The Social Psychology of Intractable Conflicts

Keren Sharvit is a lecturer in the Program for Peace and Conflict Management Studies and the Department of Psychology at the University of Haifa. She received her Ph.D. from Tel Aviv University in 2008 and completed postdoctoral training at the Swiss Center for Conflict Research, Management and Resolution, Hebrew University of Jerusalem and the Department of Psychology, University of Maryland, College Park. Her research concerns societal belief systems that develop in times of intractable conflict and their role in assisting processes of coping with distress resulting from exposure to violence on the other hand and in facilitating avoidance of unpleasant emotional experiences resulting from harmful behavior toward the rivals on the other hand. In studying these processes her research touches on processes of motivated reasoning and emotion regulations and their societal implications in the context of intractable conflict. Her work on these topics has been published in journals such as JCR, JPR and EJSP.

Eran Halperin is an associate professor at the new school of psychology at the IDC, Herzliya. He received his Ph.D. from the University of Haifa in 2007 (summa cum laude) and completed postdoctoral training (through a Fulbright Scholarship) at the Department of Psychology, Stanford University, in 2008. He serves as an associate editor of the international journal of Political Psychology and in 2012 was awarded the Erikson award for early career achievements in the field. Dr. Halperin's main line of research focuses on the role of emotions and emotion regulation in determining public opinion towards peace and equality, on the one hand and towards war and discrimination, on the other. In addition, he is interested in the psychological roots of some of the most destructive political ramifications of intergroup conflicts (e.g., intolerance, exclusion and intergroup violence). The unique case of Israeli society in general and theIsraeli-Palestinian conflict in particular, motivates his work and inspires his thinking. His recent work on these issues has been published in Science. Additionally, in recent years, he has published articles in journals such as JPSP, JESP, Psychological Science, JCR, BJPS, Political Psychology and JPR.