Final answer:
According to Thomas Hobbes, the three principal causes of quarrel in human nature are competition, diffidence, and glory, necessitating a social contract to establish a sovereign with absolute power for peace and order.
Step-by-step explanation:
The three principal causes of quarrel in the nature of man, according to Thomas Hobbes, are competition, diffidence, and glory. Hobbes posits these causes in his seminal work, Leviathan, where he explores the human condition and the need for a social contract to maintain order. In Hobbes' view, the natural state of humans is a war of all against all, where life is "solitary, poor, nasty, brutish, and short." To escape this state and ensure survival, humans enter into a contract where they surrender certain freedoms in exchange for peace and the protection of a sovereign. This sovereign, which Hobbes believed should have absolute power, is necessary to prevent humans from returning to their natural state of perpetual conflict, driven by competition for resources, lack of confidence in others' intentions (diffidence), and desire for reputation (glory).