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Intractable Conflict Threat and Opportunity >
Runaway Escalation and Hyper-Polarization >
Small-Group Intractable Conflict Threat
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BI Article
Siege Mentality
Many societies believe that other societies have negative intentions towards them. But with the "siege mentality," the situation is far more extreme. They believe that the entire world is hostile toward them.
BI Article
Victimhood
Victimhood has a dual nature---people can be both ashamed and proud of their victim status at the same time.
BI Article
Ethos of Conflict
A community's ethos is its shared beliefs, goals and identity. Communities in an intractable conflict expand that ethos to explain their approach to the conflict. A community's ethos strongly affects how destructive the conflict becomes.
News and Opinion
Hey, America, Grow Up!
A retrospective look at how social psychological changes that have occurred in Western societies over the last several decades have made our problems so much more intractable.
Colleague Activities
Threats to American Democracy Ahead of an Unprecedented Presidential Election - Findings from the 2023 American Values Survey
A look at the state of the country in details show widespread pessimism, fear of and acceptance of political violence and paranoia about the other side.
News and Opinion
America Feels Like a Codependent Household
An attempt to help us better understand US political psychology by comparing it to dysfunctional family dynamics.
News and Opinion
The psychological dangers of being in a silo
A look at the downsides of living inside a homogeneous information bubble.
News and Opinion
Collision with Reality: What Depth Psychology Can Tell us About Victimhood Culture
An exploration of the complex psychological issues that surround being victimized and thinking of oneself as a victim.
News and Opinion
Diseases of the Intellect
A provocative exploration of some of the psychological dynamics that prevent us from constructively responding when things go wrong.
News and Opinion
Between Israelis and Palestinians, a Lethal Psychological Chasm Grows
News and Opinion
How to Escape 'the Worst Possible Timeline'
An insightful examination of the complex psychology swirling around our pervasive sense pessimism plus thoughts on how to constructively grapple with our many problems without being consumed by them.
News and Opinion
Protest Porn -- The pleasure-seeking behind today's righteous causes
An analysis of the complex psychological reasons why people become involved in mass protests and why those protests are often viewed in such apocalyptic terms.
News and Opinion
What Will Happen to the American Psyche If Trump Is Reelected?
An essay exploring some of the many ways in which our hyper-polarized politics is affecting us psychologically and physiologically.