Resolving Intractable Conflicts

For the first time in the last 20 years support for a two-state solution to the Israeli-Palestinian conflict has dropped below 50%. In tandem the alternative of a one-state solution is growing in popularity. It is clear that innovative approaches are needed in order to break the cycle of violence– as past experience shows that intractable conflicts are in fact solvable. Dr. Rosner’s research suggests an innovative approach, looking at an often-ignored aspect of the conflict: gender. In doing so he also takes into account previous work by Prof. Bar-Tal who argues that there are two narratives concerning the Israeli-Palestinian conflict which fight for dominance: one which sees the conflict as never-ending and unsolvable and one which values compromise and sees peace as possible.  Using data collected as part of the monthly Peace Index surveys leads to the conclusion that women are more likely to support peace negotiations and political compromise. Regarding support for the Oslo Accords, the more Israel is entangled in conflict the more pronounced the difference between women and men becomes. In fact, after rigorous examination of each month’s data, including regression analysis to account for political and religious affiliation, it became evident that the difference between genders was much more frequent after 2001– the period of the Second Intifada. The conclusion is that in intractable conflicts women support a peace agreement slightly more than men. Nevertheless, the socio-cultural and geopolitical context is tremendously important for fully understanding the correlation.