The Homeland Kaleidoscope: Perceptions of Threats and Coping Among Israeli Civilians in a Diversity of Conflict Zones

Abstract

Abstract This paper explores perceptions of threat and the subjective ability to cope with belligerency in conflict zones using the diversity of Israel’s security arenas. Three research populations were defined, all adult residents in Jewish or mixed localities with a high probability of involvement in a security conflict or in which confrontations occurred between 2002 and 2014: residents of the northern border area ( n = 385), residents of the Gaza area ( n = 262), and residents of Judea and Samaria ( n = 496). Stratified sampling was conducted in each population to generate representative samples. The fourth research population served as the control group for this study: a representative random sample of all Israeli residents aged 18 and over living in Jewish localities ( n = 493). The main insight that arises from this study is that residents’ attitudes and understanding of the security situation, their perceptions of threat, and their ability to cope with threat are not exclusively shaped by concrete security incidents. Instead, their attitudes and perceptions are the product of multiple formative factors acting concurrently. In each region and population group, it is possible to identify a “cumulative context” that crystallizes from four key factors that shape residents’ perceptions: (a) the socio-economic background of the population and the community, (b) factors related to community organization, (c) geographic proximity to the source of threat, and (d) experience and memories of past events.