Abstract
How do wars shape emotions and attitudes in intractable conflicts? In two studies conducted in the aftermath of the 2014 Gaza War in the Middle East, we tested a new theoretical model wherein the ability to regulate emotions is central in determining the influence of war exposure on emotions (i.e., group-based humiliation) and support for militancy, through posttraumatic stress symptoms (PSS). Results supported our model: (a) higher exposure to the war predicted group-based humiliation in both studies and in Study 2 also greater support for militancy; in both studies, (b) higher exposure predicted more PSS only among participants high in emotion dysregulation, and, for them, (c) higher exposure predicted greater group-based humiliation, through increased levels of PSS. Results from Study 2 suggest that (d) group-based humiliation will ultimately lead to greater support for militancy. The findings’ contribution to the different literatures and their integration is discussed.
| Original language | American English |
|---|---|
| Pages (from-to) | 965-977 |
| Number of pages | 13 |
| Journal | Personality and Social Psychology Bulletin |
| Volume | 45 |
| Issue number | 6 |
| DOIs | |
| State | Published - 1 Jun 2019 |
| Externally published | Yes |
Bibliographical note
Funding Information:The author(s) disclosed receipt of the following financial support for the research, authorship, and/or publication of this article: This work was supported by a European Research Council grant (335607) to the last author and the National Institute of Mental Health grant (R01 MH073687) to the third author.
Publisher Copyright:
© 2018 by the Society for Personality and Social Psychology, Inc.
Keywords
- emotion regulation
- exposure to terrorism and political violence
- humiliation
- intractable conflict
- stress
