Concepts of conflict 14 april 2010

Intra-personal

Intra-group

Inter-group

Inter-personal

“Scarce resources”

MATERIAL / RATIONAL Parties focus on some

external resource

“Interference from others”

SOCIAL / RELATIONAL Parties focus on

relationships and social structure

“Expressions of Conflict”

“Perceptions”SYMBOLIC Parties focus on competing world views and meaning-

making systems (lenses)

Latent / Hidden Latent / Hidden conflictconflict

Surface conflictSurface conflictOpen conflictOpen conflict

Physical

Psychological

Social

Environmental

Prevent people from reaching their full human potential

AGGRESSION

Aggression as a rooted instinct

Dual Instinct Theory (Freud, 1920)

• Human behavior is driven by 2 basic forces: life and death instinct These instincts are a source intra- psychic conflict which can be

resolved by diverting the destructive force away on to others

Built-in Instinct Theory (Lorenz, 1966)

•Aggression is innate, an unavoidable feature of human nature•Aggressive behavior serves an adaptive function- “survival of the strongest”

Aggression as drive*

-Frustration-aggression (Dollard, 1941)aggression is caused by frustration that stems not only from deprivation but also from the gap between expectations and results

-Aggression-aversive stimulation (Berkowitz, 1989) Fear Physical pain Psychological discomfort

*not a consistently present energy but is activated when there is deprivation

Aggression as learned behavior

(Bandura, Ross and Ross, 1963)

- aggressive behavior as produced by “nurture” as opposed to “nature” (acquired through learning processes)

Determinants of Aggression (Factors that Contribute to Aggressive Behavior)

Personal variables

1. Sex (men as generally more aggressive than women:

Men have more criminal records

Men show more aggressive behavior

Men have higher levels of testosterones

Situational Variables

-availability and accessibility of weapons

-alcohol consumption

-temperature

-noise

-crowding

Media influences

-weaken viewers’ inhibitions against aggression

-habituation or reduction of sensitivity to suffering

Ongoing polarization, mistrust and hostility between/ among

different groups in the community

Community Relations Theory

Incompatible positions and a “zero-sum” view of conflict

being adopted by the parties in conflict

Principled Negotiation Theory

Incompatibilities between different cultural

communication stylesIntercultural

Miscommunication Theory

Unmet or frustrated basic human needs – physical, psychological, and social (e.g., security, identity,

recognition, participation, and autonomy

Human Needs Theory

Feelings of threatened identity often rooted in unresolved past

loss and sufferingIdentity Theory

Real problems of inequality and injustice expressed by

competing social, cultural, and economic frameworks

Conflict Transformation

Theory

CONSTRUCTIVE

DESTRUCTIVE

MORE VIOLENCE

LESS TRUST

LESS ACCURATE COMMUNICATIONS

LESS DIRECT CONTACT

P

Problem-solving

Disagree but share problem

Person seen as problem

Shift from disagreement to

personal antagonism

Issue proliferation

Multiplication of issues from specific to

general

Triangle

“Talk about” not “talk with”

CONSTRUCTIVE

DESTRUCTIVE

MORE VIOLENCE

LESS TRUST

LESS ACCURATE COMMUNICATIONS

LESS DIRECT CONTACT

HOSTILITY

Full blown Antagonism

>>>>>>>>>>>>>Hostility

Reaction & escalation

An eye for an eye, a

tooth for a tooth.

Polarization

Change in social organization

The ABC Triangle of ViolenceThe ABC Triangle of Violence

BEHAVIOR: Hatred for the enemy, direct physical violence, killing, intimidation,

torture, verbal insults, etc.

BEHAVIOR: Hatred for the enemy, direct physical violence, killing, intimidation,

torture, verbal insults, etc.

ATTITUDES: Feelings/ Values Sources: Hatred, fear, mistrust, racism, sexism,

intolerance, bigotry

ATTITUDES: Feelings/ Values Sources: Hatred, fear, mistrust, racism, sexism,

intolerance, bigotry

CONTEXT + System + Structures: Structural/ institutional violence,

discrimination (e.g. in education, employment, health care, etc.), globalization of economy,

denial of rights and liberties, segregation (e.g., apartheid)

CONTEXT + System + Structures: Structural/ institutional violence,

discrimination (e.g. in education, employment, health care, etc.), globalization of economy,

denial of rights and liberties, segregation (e.g., apartheid)

Promotes war and armamentsPromotes war and armaments

Weapons are mystified to represent force, scientific progress, exercise of power (through war toys, video games, violent movies, etc.)

Art, education, religion, mass communications are used as the basis of war by powerful groups in society (cultural and educational manipulation

Commodifies the powerlessCommodifies the powerless

Those with little power are considered objects.

Patriarchalism and sexism (women as objects)

Majority vs. minority relations

Marginalized groups, (the the poor, the disabled, indigenous tribes, etc.)

Invokes the image of the “enemy”

The enemy …

Can be a nation;

Can be a religious / ideological group in the community;

Can be people of a different race, tribe, or language group;

Belongs to the OUT-Group;

Is blamed for failure or attack (scapegoat function);

Threatens everything that is good and valuable to oneself and one’s community

OtheringOthering

Dualistic thinking: right Dualistic thinking: right vs. wrong, good vs. bad, vs. wrong, good vs. bad, etc.etc.

Separates people into better and worse, Separates people into better and worse, good or bad good or bad

Dehumanizes the enemyDehumanizes the enemy

Removal of all human facesRemoval of all human faces

CONFLICT PREVENTIONCONFLICT PREVENTION

CONFLICT SETTLEMENTCONFLICT SETTLEMENT

CONFLICT MANAGEMENTCONFLICT MANAGEMENT

CONFLICT RESOLUTIONCONFLICT RESOLUTION

CONFLICT TRANSFORMATIONCONFLICT TRANSFORMATION

Latent / Hidden conflict

Open conflict

Surface conflict

I NTERVENTION

J U S T I C E

ISSUE

POWERRELATION-SHIP

HOW

WHAT

WHONEEDSINTE-RESTS

WHO

CULTPOL

ECO

DYNAMICS OF SOCIAL CONFLICT