Brennan Dwyer
Throughout human history there have been numerous cases of conflict and tension between different groups of people. The world is much better when everyone is united and accepting of one another. It is likely essential that the ‘root’ of what causes conflict and tension between different groups of people is found, so that the world can be a more peaceful, stable, and accepting place.
Different factors have contributed to conflict in recent history, such as economic factors. An article from “Thought Economics” titled Global Conflict: Causes and Solutions for Peace states the following about economic factors causing conflict: “From early colonialism to modern capitalism, our western economic growth has often been at the detriment of other nations where, for example, we have aggressively acquired assets, created trade routes, or leveraged economic scale to source products, assets, and services artificially cheaply. These processes, while creating great wealth and development in Europe and the USA, have exacerbated poverty and economic inequality in many nations, creating a great deal of tension and potential for conflict” (MBE, 2009). According to Root causes of violent conflict in developing countries which discusses economics and conflict, “Poverty and political, social, and economic inequalities between groups predispose to conflict; policies to tackle them will reduce this risk” (Stewart, 2002). Also, according to that source, “Four economic hypotheses have been put forward to explain intra-state wars, based on factors related to group motivation, private motivation, failure of the social contract, and environmental degradation” (Stewart, 2002).
This paper hypothesizes that there is a specific cycle that can largely contribute to conflict and tensions between different groups of people. This hypothesis is somewhat related to economics, like with the different sources. Rather than it simply being seen that one group is right and the other group is wrong, or each group has a lot of miscommunication, it is hypothesized that there is a little more complexity to that, which will be shown in the hypothesized cycle.
Chart 1 is the hypothesized cycle.
Chart 1
The hypothesized cycle that is seen in Chart 1 starts out with the initial first stage that is an initial circumstance or hardship that makes Group A in a more oppressed state then Group B.
In the second stage Group A is more impoverished than Group B and is more likely to rebel against Group B as a result of being more oppressed as seen in the initial first stage.
Then in the third stage, Group B witnesses or hears about Group A being more impoverished and more likely to rebel against them.
Then in the fourth stage, as a result of Group B witnessing or hearing those things in the third stage, Group B develops a bias and resentment towards Group A, and separates themselves from Group A.
On to the fifth stage, Group B gives less opportunity and rebels more towards Group A because of their bias and resentment that developed from the previous stage.
Finally, because of even less opportunity towards Group A and the rebelling against them, this goes back to the second stage and further exacerbates it. Then the cycle continues, unless if something is done to stop the cycle.
Though there are likely other contributing factors towards conflict and tension between groups of people, the possible reason hypothesized in this paper is likely a logical one. The idea that impoverishment leads to rebelling should be taken with caution, as this may be an oversimplification, and shouldn’t be used to categorize people. The hypotheses of this paper and the cycle should be further investigated to see if it is true, or if there is at least any empirical evidence towards it, or specific examples seen in history that this hypothesis could match up with. Studies like that should be done in a sensitive manner and should only promote peace and not further conflict and tension. Perhaps if the hypothesis is true, then more detailed and successful action can be taken to find solutions to lesson conflict and tension, and make the world a better place for everyone.
Works Cited
MBE, V. S. (2009, July 16). Global Conflict: Causes and Solutions for Peace. Retrieved September 29, 2020, from https://thoughteconomics.com/global-conflict-causes-and-solutions-for-peace/
Stewart, F. (2002, February 9). Root causes of violent conflict in developing countries. Retrieved September 29, 2020, from https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC1122271/
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