Mutual Perceptions of Arabs and Jews in Israel

Abstract

Mutual perceptions of Israeli Arabs and Jews were examined; 132 Jewish university students and 122 Arab teacher college students rated the social and intellectual characteristics of a typical Israeli Arab and a typical Israeli Jew on a semantic differential scale. The findings showed that (1) each group views itself more favorably that it does the other; (2) both groups agree that the Jew excels intellectually rather than socially, while the opposite holds true for the Arab; and (3) the Jews emphasize their intellectual advantage, while the Arabs emphasize their social superiority. The results were related to other findings indicating that these perceptions are part of more general image, common in Israel, of Western and Middle-Eastern persons.