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Explaining the Iran-U.S. Value Asymmetry
(Jerusalem Center for Security and Foreign Affairs) Dr. Irwin J. Mansdorf - The geopolitical friction between the U.S. and Iran is driven by fundamentally different cultural value systems that dictate their respective psychological motives. American strategy is anchored in the Enlightenment ideal of "Life, Liberty, and the pursuit of Happiness" - a constitutional guarantee that prioritizes the avoidance of suffering and the preservation of individual well-being. In contrast, Iran is guided by a Shiite theological framework that sacralizes suffering and martyrdom as essential components of a moral victory within the context of jihad. This ideological rift creates a profound psychological asymmetry, explaining why a diplomatic stalemate persists even in the wake of overwhelming American kinetic superiority. While the U.S. seeks "Win-Win" solutions through the application of military strength, Iran pursues strategic depth through a long-term lens that views the endurance of hardship as a form of sovereignty. These conflicting values explain the failure of traditional negotiations. Iran views capitulation as a moral defeat, allowing them to absorb heavy losses that would be politically catastrophic in a Western context. Given the Iranian capacity to tolerate military pain, American interests may be better served by adding non-kinetic strategies - such as economic isolation and leveraging internal domestic unrest - that challenge the regime's stability without feeding its martyrdom narrative. The writer is a clinical psychologist and a fellow at the Jerusalem Center specializing in political psychology.