Abstract
An essential element in the make-up of conflicts is the subjective knowledge the parties hold concerning their relation. Such knowledge determines, first, whether the situation is characterized as a conflict, and, second, how the conflict is reacted to, affectively and behaviorally. This chapter looks at intergroup and international conflicts from the perspective of a theory of lay epistemology (cf. Bar-Tal & Bar-Tal, in press; Kruglanski, 1980; Kruglanski & Ajzen, 1983; Kruglanski & Jaffe, 1986; Kruglanski & Klar, 1985) dealing with the process of knowledge acquisition. According to this perspective, conflict is viewed as a specific content of knowledge, or as a specific cognitive schema. The specific content of knowledge contained in a conflict schema refers to incompatibility of goals between parties. A conflict situation is said to occur when at least one of the parties subscribes to the conflict schema. Thus, the retention or modification of the conflict schema may determine whether conflict is maintained or resolved.
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Klar, Y., Bar-Tal, D., Kruglanski, A.W. (1988). Conflict as a Cognitive Schema: Toward a Social Cognitive Analysis of Conflict and Conflict Termination. In: Stroebe, W., Kruglanski, A.W., Bar-Tal, D., Hewstone, M. (eds) The Social Psychology of Intergroup Conflict. Springer Series in Social Psychology. Springer, Berlin, Heidelberg. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-52124-9_4
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DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-3-642-52124-9_4
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