Published: 17 December 2019
Last updated: 4 March 2024
TO BE THE VICTIM in a conflict is no less significant in terms of impact than being the victor, according to a recent study conducted at Tel Aviv University. Indeed, for many people it is the main goal – whether the conflict is an argument between two private individuals or a national dispute.
Professor Nurit Shnabel says the researchers’ initial hypothesis of human empathy was that vengefulness and generosity would offset each other, but in practice the opposite happened: participants display a degree of vengefulness similar to those who were only victimized, with no connection to their own behaviour.
“They seemingly forgot that they too didn’t do right by the other, and remembered only that the other didn’t do right by them,” Shnabel says. “This pattern of behaviour shows that people have a heightened sensitivity toward situations in which they are victimised, and reduced sensitivity for situations in which they are the perpetrators.”
“It’s easy for us to remember the brutal attacks we have suffered, and it’s hard for us even to hear about Palestinian suffering,” she explains. “But we are not unique in this. The same mechanism exists in every conflict.
The phenomenon that’s been identified in this context by Shnabel and her colleagues is called “competitive victimhood.”
FULL STORY How to solve the Israeli-Palestinian conflict, according to psychology research (Haaretz)
Photo: Palestinians and Israelis clash during demonstrations on Jerusalem Day, 2018 (Olivier Fitoussi)
