Introduction: Transformative approaches to conflict

Transformative Mediation

• What it is
• Key Concepts: Empowerment
• Key Concepts: Recognition
• Comparison of transformative mediation and problem solving mediation
• Hall marks of transformative mediation
• Transformative Mediation and Alternative World Views
• Applications of transformative mediation
• How to find a transformative mediator
• How to find a transformative mediation training program
• Summaries of selected publications on transformative mediation, including the Promise of Mediation
• Bibliography on transformative mediation
• Links to other websites on transformative mediation

Conflict Transformation and Peacemaking

• John Paul Lederach's conception of conflict transformation
• Key concepts: Peace and Justice
• Key concepts: Peace, Justice, Truth, and Mercy
• Key concepts:Truth
• A comparison of Lederach's Conflict Transformation with Bush and Folger's Transformative Mediation
• Link to a full-text article by John Paul Lederach on the interplay between the key concepts discussed above.
• Link to summaries of other John Paul Lederach works

Human Needs/Analytical Problem Solving

• Analytical Problem Solving
• Key Concepts: Interests, Needs, and Values
• Comparison of conflict resolution (through analytical problem solving) and dispute settlement

Dialogue - a Therapeutic approach to conflict transformation

• Key concepts: Dialogue versus Debate
• Comparison of Dialogue to Mediation

Constructive Confrontation

• Key Concepts: Core conflicts and conflict overlays
• Key Concepts: Incrementalism and remediality
• Comparison of constructive confrontation to resolution-based approaches to conflict

Collaborative Learning

Summaries of Selected Readings on Transformative Appraoches to Conflict

Bibliography on Transformative Appraoches to Conflict

Links to other Websites dealing with Transformative Appraoches to Conflict

Full Text Searching of Transformative Appraoches to Conflict

Introduction

Transformative Approaches to Conflict

The terms "transformation" and "transformative conflict resolution" are used in many different ways. Almost all uses of the two terms, however, relate "transformation" to a fundamental change in attitude and/or behavior of individuals and/or the relationship between two or more disputing parties. While the change may be relatively minor or subtle, it goes beyond the immediate situation to alter the way in which the parties see themselves, the world, and especially, each other and how they treat each other over the long term. This contrasts with problem-solving conflict resolution which is used to resolve a specific short-term problem, while usually ignoring or avoiding long-term relationship issues.

Transformative conflict resolution takes many forms. One with increasing visibility and interest over the last several years is transformative mediation. Other approaches include conflict transformation, constructive confrontation, analytical problem solving, dialogue, and collaborative learning. This website explains these and related terms and processes, summarizes key publications in each of these areas, and provides access to additional resources on each of these topics.

Transformative Mediation

Transformative mediation, for example, can be contrasted with problem solving mediation. While problem solving or settlement-oriented mediation focuses on finding a mutually agreeable settlement of an immediate dispute, transformative mediation, as described by Bush and Folger (1994), seeks to transform the disputing parties by empowering them to understand their own situation and needs, as well as encouraging them to recognize the situation and needs of their opponent(s). While such empowerment and recognition often lay the groundwork for a mutually- acceptable settlement, such an outcome is not the primary goal. Rather, the parties' empowerment and recognition are the main objectives of the transformative approach to mediation.

Conflict Transformation

Lederach uses the term "conflict transformation" in a similar, though broader way. Like Bush and Folger, Lederach suggests that conflict professionals stop focusing on "resolution," because resolution often involves the continuation of injustice. He also rejects the notion of "conflict management" because it is too narrow. Management, he asserts, tends to focus on the technical and practical side of peacemaking, while ignoring the cultural and relational issues.

Lederach uses the term "conflict transformation" to describe his approach to peacebuilding. This approach focuses on the dialectic nature of conflict. It sees conflict as caused by--as well as causing--changes in relationships. In order to build peace, negative or destructive interaction patterns need to be transformed into positive or constructive relationships and interactions. This occurs through personal and systemic change that encourages and allows the parties to pursue truth, justice, and mercy simultaneously with peace. Like Bush and Folger, Lederach too focuses on the development of empowerment and mutual recognition, along with interdependence, justice, forgiveness, and reconciliation.

Human Needs/Analytical Problem Solving

A related, yet still different image of conflict transformation comes from a group of theorists who stress the importance of fundamental human needs to the development and maintenance of protracted or deep-rooted conflict. When an individual or group is denied its fundamental need for identity, security, recognition, or equal participation within the society, say theorists such as John Burton, Herbert Kelman, and Jay Rothman, protracted conflict is inevitable. The only way to resolve such conflict is to identify the needs that are threatened or denied, and restructure relationships and/or the social system in a way that protects those needs for all individuals and groups. This is often attempted by holding what are called "analytical problem solving workshops" in which a panel of scholars facilitates private, unofficial analytical discussions about the nature of a particular difficult conflict. By helping the parties work together to frame the conflict in terms of needs, potential solutions to the impasse often become apparent when they were not so before. Most often, these solutions require significant changes in the social, economic, and/or political structures--thus, like Lederach, they see conflict transformation as requiring systemic as well as personal change.

Dialogue

A growing number of conflict professionals have been utilizing dialogue to transform deep-rooted, value-based conflicts. With dialogue, small groups of people who hold opposing views on highly divisive and emotional public policy issues (such as abortion or gay rights) are brought together to have a "new kind of conversation." Unlike debate, which seeks to score points and to persuade, the goal of dialogue is mutual understanding and respect--essentially recognition in Bush and Folger's terms. This does not lead to a resolution of the conflict, but it can lead to a transformation in the way the conflict is pursued from one which is highly destructive and divisive to one which is constructive and leads to personal growth. Dialogue has also been used effectively to alter relationships in deep-rooted ethnic conflicts, such as that between the Palestinians and the Israelis.

Constructive Confrontation

Another approach to transformation is what Burgess and Burgess call constructive confrontation. This approach to intractable conflict is primarily directed at public policy, intergroup, and international conflicts. It assumes that conflicts over high-stakes distributional questions, deep-rooted value issues, and domination issues are inevitable and ongoing. Although particular short-term disputes can be settled, the underlying long-term conflict will remain. Although these kinds of conflicts can seldom be completely resolved, they can be confronted in more or less constructive ways. Thus, constructive confrontation is a way of dealing with a conflict that seeks to transform the conflict process, which will then allow a transformation of relationships, and at times, the individuals and social structures as well.

Collaborative Learning

Collaborative learning is a process developed by Steven Daniels, Gregg Walker, Matthew Carroll, and Keith Blatner to enhance the public policy decision making process, especially as it involves public participation. This approach utilizes ideas from soft systems methodology (a theory of learning) and adlternative dispute resolution. The key ideas are that public participants and "experts" must work together to learn more about the system that they are all operating in together. As in other transformative processes, the goal of collaborative learning is not solving a particular problem, but improving a situation, which is framed as a set of interrelated systems. The goal of collaborative learning is to utilize improved communication and negotiation processes as a means through which learning--and then improvement of the situation--can occur.