Two Social Representations Studies of One Social Group: Social and Methodological Aspects
Mots-clés :
religious zionist movement, social representations, identity, conflict, mandatory military service, polyphasiaRésumé
This paper brings together two separate studies that investigated identity representations of
members of a minority group in Israeli society known as Religious Zionists. The studies were
carried out by different researchers a decade apart, so that each was influenced by a different
social context. Each researcher adopted Emda Orr's approach to social research that urges using
SR theory to enhance understanding of social issues in Israel and pinpoint possible applications
of such understanding. The paper highlights similarities and differences in the findings of these
two researchers who used different methodologies to examine issues of group identity in
general and identity of Religious Zionists in particular. We believe that because of their
inherent differences, the two studies can be usefully presented in tandem to provide a wider and
more complex picture of the group's social representations and illuminate their identity
negotiating process. In conclusion we consider implications of this methodology of bringing
such different studies together for identity issues and for social representations theory.
