Conflict in the marine environment is of increasing relevance as blue growth boundaries are pushed and resource access and use are in dispute. Social science disciplines have a long history and a wide range of approaches for studying conflict. However, understanding the approaches used to study marine conflict is challenging since the literature is large, broad, difficult to navigate, and there is little connection between conflict themes and the associated methods used to analyze these conflicts. In the present study, we take a first step to address this by systematically reviewing 109 peer-reviewed articles that employ empirical social science methods to study marine conflict. We find that studies on marine conflicts have centered on disputed space, mainly at local scale, and natural resources, such as fish. The main parties at the center of the conflicts are small-scale fisheries and public authorities, although with a growing presence of blue growth sectors. Most studies employed qualitative approaches to study marine conflicts. Current gaps in the understanding of marine conflict include gaps in understanding relational interactions and historical causal events. The need for social science research into marine conflict and the application of multiple social science methods is ongoing as different constellations of conflict actors emerge and as disputed ocean spaces expand beyond EEZs, to include polar regions, and the sea floor.

随着蓝色增长边界的突破以及资源获取和使用的争议，海洋环境冲突变得越来越重要。社会科学学科有着悠久的历史和研究冲突的广泛方法。然而，理解用于研究海洋冲突的方法具有挑战性，因为文献庞大、广泛、难以导航，而且冲突主题与用于分析这些冲突的相关方法之间几乎没有联系。在本研究中，我们采取了解决这一问题的第一步，系统地回顾了 109 篇采用实证社会科学方法来研究海洋冲突的同行评审文章。我们发现，关于海洋冲突的研究主要集中在有争议的空间（主要是局部规模）和自然资源（例如鱼类）上。冲突中心的主要各方是小规模渔业和公共当局，尽管蓝色增长部门的存在日益增多。大多数研究采用定性方法来研究海洋冲突。当前对海洋冲突理解的差距包括对相互关系和历史因果事件理解的差距。随着不同冲突行为体的出现以及有争议的海洋空间扩展到专属经济区之外，包括极地地区和海底，对海洋冲突进行社会科学研究和应用多种社会科学方法的需求不断增加。当前对海洋冲突理解的差距包括对相互关系和历史因果事件理解的差距。随着不同冲突行为体的出现以及有争议的海洋空间扩展到专属经济区之外，包括极地地区和海底，对海洋冲突进行社会科学研究和应用多种社会科学方法的需求不断增加。当前对海洋冲突理解的差距包括对相互关系和历史因果事件理解的差距。随着不同冲突行为体的出现以及有争议的海洋空间扩展到专属经济区之外，包括极地地区和海底，对海洋冲突进行社会科学研究和应用多种社会科学方法的需求不断增加。