The Role of Evolution in Ethnocentric Conflict and Its Management

Abstract

Although ethnocentric conflict is perhaps the most intractable political problem of our times, we understand it very incompletely. A useful explanation must be evolutionarily informed, but it must go beyond inclusive fitness theory, the heart of sociobiology. Culturally evolved predispositions for human sociality and social identity are also critical for explaining the intransigence of ethnocentric conflicts, and they could have evolved independently of, and even at odds with, biological evolution. Sociobiological theory produces either resignation or inef-Pcacious action proposals to manage ethnic conflicts, and it ignores the peacemaking relevance of culturally evolved predispositions, which can help ethnic groups to manage conflict in constructive ways.

The necessity of observing real life situations: Palestinian‐Israeli violence as a laboratory for learning about social behaviour

“…First, taking the evolutionary approach, the context of violence and conflict arouses the crucial will to survival by containment of the violence and the enemy (Caporael & Brewer, 1991;Ross, 1991). This intensive and extensive effort leads to a series of behaviours that aim to serve the existential need of survival.…”

Intolerance of “Others” among Palestinian and Jewish Students in Israel

“…Beside their emotional and motivational components, national and civic identities "involve a perception of collective interests; it is socially constructed and manipulated by national leaders; and it must, to be effective, outcompete both self-interest considerations and individuals' loyalties to other social groups" (Stem 1995, p. 219;also Yuval-Davis 1997). As such, national and civic identities are among the collectivistic identities that produce societal boundaries allowing the individuals in existing or imagined communities to make sense of "us" and "them" (Anderson 1983;Peleg 1997;Ross 1991;Shapira 1997;Sidanius and Duffy 1988). National identities become even more important in multinational societies in which one national group forms a large minority (like Israel, Canada, Belgium, and Ireland; see, for example, Letamendia 1997).…”

Can Evolutionary Theory Explain Nationalist Violence? Czecho Slovak and Bosnian Illustrations

“…Recent refinements in evolutionary theory take issue with the genetically deterministic overtones of such statements. Thinkers like Marc Howard Ross (1991) and William Durham (1991) prefer to locate the source of group differentiation mechanisms in culture. Culture is deemed by evolutionary theorists to be an adaptive tool enjoyed by human beings which evolves, like all living organisms, over time.…”

“…Ross, in particular, has shown how culture can make different patterns of ethnic relations possible. His elaboration of the constructs 'sociality' (the human capacity for interpersonal, affective relationships) and 'identity' (the human ability to delimit insiders from outsiders) demonstrates that such culturally evolved predispositions can be exploited to facilitate either interethnic aggression or accommodation (Ross 1991).…”