Too attached to let others in? The role of different types of place attachment in predicting intergroup attitudes in a conflict setting

摘要

What is the role of emotional attachment to a place in predicting intergroup attitudes in a conflict setting? Here, we examined whether different types of place attachment would have distinct consequences for intergroup attitudes. Research was conducted in Jerusalem, where two conflicting groups fight for the territorial occupancy of the same land. We tested our hypotheses in three studies among Israelis and Palestinians and we measured their attitudes towards each other. The results showed that in case of Israelis, a traditional (natural and unintentional) form of attachment predicted prejudice towards out-group but an active form of attachment (i.e. conscious identification with a place) was negatively related to prejudice; in case of Palestinians, there was no effect of attachment (neither traditional, nor active), but place relativity (i.e. an indifferent attitude towards place) positively predicted acceptance of the outgroup. The implications of people-place relations in the contested city are discussed.