2
family members might find themselves in an all-or-nothing conflict over the distribution of a family
heirloom.
6
Indivisibility is thus a central element of conflict. In many cases, the very presence of an
indivisible issue leads to negotiation failure.
7
But the irony is that as intractable as indivisible conflict
may seem, it is also malleable: an issue that appears divisible in one time period can prove indivisible in
another, and vice versa. For example, Jerusalem was not always treated as indivisible. While Ariel
Sharon has pledged to maintain Jerusalem as the eternal and undivided capital of Jerusalem, earlier
leaders were willing to divide the Holy City. Conflict over Ireland too only came to be conceived as
indivisible—unable to be ruled by both the British and Irish—in the 20
th
century.
The malleability of indivisibility naturally raises the question of how is it that issues become
indivisible. Given the significance of indivisible issues in bargaining and conflict, the lack of attention
devoted to this question is surprising. While economists have theorized the impact of indivisible issues on
bargaining, their theories address indivisibility primarily as a distribution problem: they assume that an
issue is indivisible and address how equitable distribution might be achieved using such mechanisms as
lottery, auction, and compensation. Although this is an important aspect of indivisible goods and
bargaining theory, it leaves unanswered why disputes that in theory should have room for
compromise—and in practice often do—might become all-or-nothing games.
Explanations of indivisibility are also underdeveloped in international relations theory. Most of
our models of conflict treat contested issues as comparable to currency—perfectly divisible, allowing for
a broad range of settlements.
8
When issue indivisibilities are discussed, they are often attributed to
mechanisms unrelated to the contested issue: for instance, as results of the commitment problem, or over
6
See Elster 1989 on issues of child custody and indivisibility. The classic example of the object distribution problem (where a
number of indivisible objects are to be assigned to a set of individuals) is an inheritance settlement. See Samuelson 1980;
Knaster and Steinhaus 1946. Steinhaus 1948.
7
Hirschman 1994; Albin 1993, 8; Newman 1999, 16; Pillar 1983, 24.
8
E.g., Fearon 1995; Oye, 1986; Sebenius 1983; Putnam 1988.
Convention