The world has known many periods when two factions held such strong hatred of each other that bloody conflicts were regular, ongoing, unsurprising events. But there is perhaps no modern period of conflict as sustained as that of the ongoing Israel-Palestine conflict. As renewed hatred pumped the people of Israel and Palestine in summer 2006 fueling a flurry of bombings, kidnappings, and murders, author Moises Salinas continued to conduct interviews and his research in those nations for this book. Here the psychology professor explains why it may seem this conflict that has been raging more than 70 years is ironic. While in recent years both groups have basically agreed on the broad parameters of a peace agreement, the fight still rages nonetheless. Dr. Salinas says the obstacles to achieve a solution are not just political, but also psychological. Research - and interviews with residents - shows that just as much as disagreements over borders, refugees, and settlements, both parties are kept from the negotiating table by psychological factors including mistrust, hatred, stereotypes, and prejudice. Dr. Salinas shows us how the hatred and mistrust were created and persist for the populace, with interviewees ranging from an Israeli right wing settler and a Palestinian militant to commoners on both sides simply the victims of that violence. This book includes compelling reviews of the psychological research regarding Israeli-Palestinian relationships, and into stereotype and prejudice formation, violence and dehumanization, posttraumatic stress and, also, reconciliation, mediation, and peacemaking.

Dr. Salinas is the author of a previous Praeger Title: The Politics of Stereotype: Psychology and Affirmative Action, which received positive reviews from BookNews and Choice magazine:


Salinas incorporates multiple social science approaches in his examination of affirmative action, the structural causes of prejudice and discrimination, and individual psychological reactions to the latter--a tall order for a short book!�  The heart of the text examines psychological questions, studies, and methodological problems�‰ The book's strengths are its succinctness and links to psychological studies Summing Up: Recommended.

- Choice, June 2004


He has also contributed chapters for Chicano School Failure and Success by Richard R. Valencia, Intelligence Testing and Minority Students by Richard R. Valencia and Lisa A. Suzuki, and Readings about the Social Animal, by Elliot Aronson.

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BOOK INFORMATION:

Title: Planting Hatred, Sowing Pain: The Psychology of the Israeli-Palestinian Conflcit
Author: Moises F. Salinas, Ph.D.
List Price: $49.95 (UK Sterling Price: £27.95)
Publisher: Praeger Publishers
ISBN-13: 978-0-275-99005-3
Publication Date: June 2007
Publicity Contact information:
    Karin Kuczynski-Holmgren
    Senior Marketing Manager, Praeger
    Karin.Holmgren@greenwood.com
    203-226-3571
    88 Post Road West,
    Westport, CT  06991