Hypothesis Writing: Israeli-Palestinian Conflict

Introduction

The conflict between Israel and Palestine can be seen as one of the characteristic attributes of politics in the Middle East. While the tones of such conflict shift continuously, switching from an overall Arab-Israeli conflict into a state of peace negotiations, the initial causes of the conflict are still not agreed upon between both parties of the conflict.¹ The modern start of the conflict, especially in terms of violence, can be traced back to 1929.² Despite the recent peace negotiations, the conflict still goes on with reports of casualties being reported from each side.

Research Questions

Considering the statement that ”[e]nding violent conflicts requires understanding the causal factors that perpetuate them”, the current research questions will aim at understanding the causal factors of the conflict.³ Thus, the research questions sought to be answered are descriptive, focusing on the dependent variable, which in this case is the start of a conflict.⁴ Does the research question state what are the factors that contributed to the start of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict?

Hypotheses

The realist approach in international relations states that power and national interest are the main roots of conflict.⁵ Self-help and security dilemmas are the main concepts within international relations in the realist tradition. In that regard, the states within such tradition each seek their self-interests. According to such theory the hypothesis for the present research can be formulated as follows:

• Hypothesis #1 (Realist tradition): Changes in key issues related to national interest, i.e. water, borders, and security influenced the occurrence of conflict between Israel and Palestine because each state seeks its national interests.⁶

The liberal approach, on the other hand, states that conflict is not the natural condition within international relations, and in case the conflict exists, then their factors prevent this progress from being achieved.⁷ Accordingly, global governance is an essential aspect of such tradition. According to such tradition the hypothesis for the present research can be formulated as follows:

• Hypothesis #2 (Liberal tradition): The lack of world governance influenced the occurrence of conflict between Israel and Palestine because of a lack of negotiations and treaties.

The Marxist approach puts an emphasis on the materialism of the world, which serves as a precursor of class struggles.⁸ In that regard, the conflict can be downsized to two classes of exploiters and exploited in the conflict. Thus, according to such tradition the hypothesis for the present research can be formulated as follows:

• Hypothesis #3 (Marxism): The class differences between and Israel and Palestine influence the occurrence of conflict between the two states due to social inequalities. ⁹

References

BBC, “Arab Discontent”, BBC News.

Creswell, John W. Research Design : Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Method Approaches. 3rd ed. Lincoln: Sage Publications, 2009.

Daddow, Oliver J. International Relations Theory Sage Course Companions. Los Angeles: SAGE, 2009.

Foreign Affairs and Internaiton Trade Canada, “Canadian Policy on Key Issues in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict”, Foreign Affairs and Internaiton Trade Canada. Web.

Griffiths, Martin. International Relations Theory for the Twenty-First Century : An Introduction. London ; New York: Routledge, 2007.

Haushofer, Johannes, Anat Biletzki, and Nancy Kanwisher. “Both Sides Retaliate in the Israeli–Palestinian Conflict.” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Footnotes

1. Johannes Haushofer, Anat Biletzki, and Nancy Kanwisher, “Both Sides Retaliate in the Israeli–Palestinian Conflict,” Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.
2. BBC, “Arab Discontent”, BBC News. Web.
3. Haushofer, Biletzki, and Kanwisher.
4. John W. Creswell, Research Design : Qualitative, Quantitative, and Mixed Method Approaches, 3rd ed. (Lincoln: Sage Publications, 2009), 113.
5. Oliver J. Daddow, International Relations Theory, Sage Course Companions (Los Angeles: SAGE, 2009).
6. Foreign Affairs and Internaiton Trade Canada, “Canadian Policy on Key Issues in the Israeli-Palestinian Conflict”, Foreign Affairs and Internaiton Trade Canada. Web.
7. Daddow.
8. Martin Griffiths, International Relations Theory for the Twenty-First Century : An Introduction (London ; New York: Routledge, 2007).
9. Ibid.