Intra- and inter-village conflict in rural coastal communities in Indonesia : the case of the Kei islands

Using the data collected by a survey of small-scale fishing households from rural coastal communities in Indonesia, we examine the underlying factors that may potentially be associated with the incidence of conflicts among local marine resource users. Intra-village and inter-village conflicts are examined separately. We find that social relationships and individual perceptions of changes in fishery conditions are significantly associated with the incidence of both intra- and inter-village conflicts. We confirm that declining fish stocks is positively associated with inter-village conflicts but not with intra-village conflicts; while increasing catch is positively associated with intra-village conflicts but not with intra-village conflicts.