Defining Resilience from Practice: Case Study of Resilience Building in a Multi-cultural College

AbstractA resilience building process, lasting over a period of 10 years, has evolved gradually in a multi-cultural college. This article presents the college challenges and difficulties (e.g. national differences or public opposition) using the Lahad and Ben-Nesher (2008) multi-dimensional model of resilience as a theoretical framework for individual and organizational processes that contribute in coping with both crisis situations and everyday reality. The first three levels of the model are used in order to demonstrate the resilience building within the three levels of college organizational hierarchy: management, faculty and students. Finally, we discuss conclusions and applied contributions

Exploring contact theory in intergroup dialogue: an examination of attitudes and experiences in secular-religious discourse across diverse socio-religious subgroups

AbstractIn educational settings, intergroup dialogues often tackle intricate social issues, fostering student identity development. Religious discourse, specifically, has the potential to positively influence intergroup relations. However, the extent to which individuals consider their group affiliation integral to their self-concept can shape their exploration of ethno-religious identity. This study investigates the experiences and attitudes of 638 Jewish students, of secular, traditional and Modern Orthodox backgrounds, engaged in a secular-religious dialogue course. Results reveal that discussion-based meetings promote positive intergroup attitudes among students from diverse religious subgroups. Participants identified unique values in subgroup activities but expressed varied motivations and outcomes based on their diverse religious perspectives. These findings underscore the significance of contact theory in inclusive intergroup conflict contexts and highlight the role of interreligious discourse in identity exploration within educational settings

Understanding intergroup conflict: How do children in a divided society perceive group differences?

Outgroup perceptions are a fundamental element of social categorization, particularly in contexts of intergroup conflict. Social Identity Development Theory argues that perceived differences between groups is the first step in ethnic identity development. This understanding of social categories among children may have implications for negative intergroup attitudes or even prejudice. Our study explores how Jews (N=180) and Arab-Muslims (N=207) in middle -childhood perceive the difference between these two ethno-religious groups in Israel. Thematic analysis found two layers themes: (1a) differences in everyday ethnic and cultural characteristics, and (2b) differences related to religion and faith. Understanding children’s perspectives offers rich evidence about categorization processes in a divided society

Children’s bias beyond group boundaries: perceived differences, outgroup attitudes, and prosocial behavior

This study examined how children's perceptions of social group dissimilarities impact attitudes and behavior towards real-world outgroups. Focusing on Arab-Christian children living in Israel, we explored categorization into social groups based on multiple dimensions of social identity. The children (N = 231, 52% female, average age 9.8 years) were randomly presented with either Arab-Muslim or Jewish outgroup targets and performed tasks measuring perceptions, attitudes and prosocial behavior towards the outgroup. Results showed that the children perceived the Jewish outgroup as more dissimilar to their ingroup than the Arab-Muslim outgroup. They evaluated the Arab-Muslim outgroup more positively and favored them in resource allocation. The extent to which bias was influenced by the number of identity dimensions varied based on the outgroup target’s identity and the task performed. We discuss possible categorization strategies employed by children and their implications for promoting positive intergroup attitudes and behaviors during middle childhood

Outgroup prosocial giving during childhood: The role of ingroup preference and outgroup attitudes in a divided society

Amid protracted conflict, children are raised in divided contexts which shape the development of their intergroup attitudes and behaviors. Social Identity Development Theory (SIDT) suggests that ingroup preference may contribute to more negative outgroup attitudes and behaviors in middle childhood. In such contexts, ingroup favoritism may shape resource distribution, a key indicator of prosocial behavior. This study examined the predictors of resource distribution among 387 children (age: M=9.59, SD=2.34) of majority (Jewish) and minority (Arab-Muslim) groups in Israel. Rooted in SIDT, a multiple-group chain mediation found that the effect of age on outgroup prosocial giving was serially mediated by the child’s ingroup symbol preference and negative outgroup attitudes. The mediation held across both majority and minority groups, highlighting the underlying developmental process of prosocial giving across group lines in a divided society.British Psychological SocietyZefat Academic College internal institutional grantCheck for published version during checkdate report - A