Strategizing state behavior on domestic and foreign affairs: Applying game theory to media discourse, politics, and conflict management

This research aimed to apply game theory to media discourse, politics, and conflict management. Using game theory and its extension, hypergame theory, as a theoretical-methodological foundation, paved the way for enhancing the implementation of interactive strategic decision-making in international relations and political communication in an integrative way. Relying on utilizing theories in IR and media discourse, this work moves forward to achieving the stability of national, regional, and international system structures from a lens of interdisciplinary, interrelated, strategic security study. Generally, in this research: 1. We introduce first the theoretical development of what we call the "Conflict or War Impediment Strategic Approach," including a (Deception Hypergame Model of Interstate Conflict "DHMIC") and (Deterrence Entanglement Law "DEL"). 2. Second, on the game and hypergame-theoretic-analysis, our (Conflict or War Impediment Strategic Approach)'s applying cases are addressed; restoration of the (DEL) in an actual state of all-out war through a developed (Mutual-Grand Strategy Modeling of the Russia-Ukraine War 2022) takes place; also, a ('Non-Chance Space' Reduced War-Hexagon) is built for the war-(hyper)game modeling and counter-modeling, while being applied to the Russian-Ukrainian War case. 3. For accomplishing all study objectives, the discussion of a developed (Multi-Level Conflict Management Strategic Approach) comes third for: a. managing the clash of civilizations by linking media discourse, culture, the other's representation, state policies, and conflict through our game-theoretic model built, after relying on studying the non-Western representation (Egypt in our case) in the Western media (the BBC). b. Strategically managing intra-and inter-state conflicts by building (Positivity of Peace Hypergame Model "PPHGM") and (Balance of Peace-State Hypergame Model "BPSHM"), following the focus on Egypt's intra-state conflict analysis and conventionally theoretical management, to best settle, solve, and transform conflicts within and between nations depending on these hypergame strategic theoretic-models introduced.