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Cultural differences among group members, whether they belong to multinational business teams or culturally diverse families, are frequently the sources of misunderstanding and conflict. Using examples from a variety of cultures to illustrate techniques for resolving these conflicts, Conflict Across Cultures: A Unique Experience of Bridging Differences demystifies the complex ways in which misunderstandings can arise as a result of cultural differences. The authors describe and identify the processes, tools and skills that make for successful conflict resolution. Most importantly, the stories at the heart of the book are culturally and geographically diverse, applicable for groups in a wide range of settings: business, law, social service, government, non-government agencies, academic and at home.
"Conflict Across Cultures is an excellent bridging book. It is both a celebration and explanation of culture as a set of geographies, something that cumulatively surrounds and grounds us and that, like it or not, we carry inside us."
—Peter S. Adler, PhD, president of The Keystone Center, past president of SPIDR, and co-author of Building Trust: Twenty Things You Can Do to Help Environmental Stakeholder Groups Talk More Effectively About Science, Culture, Professional Knowledge and Community Wisdom
"Conflict Across Cultures: A Unique Experience of Bridging Differences comes from modern conflict resolution scholars from Canada, South Africa, Japan and the US who describe the latest concepts and framework for successful conflict resolution. With these new techniques in hand comes new understanding of the roots of cultural conflicts, exposed in a series of stories which come from a range of groups and locales. College-level students of international studies will find this perfect for classroom debate and study."
—The Midwest Book Review, "Bookwatch", March 2007
"Michelle LeBaron and Venashri Pillay are extraordinarily honest as they share situations in story form and present a new generation of resolution techniques in Conflict Across Cultures. They describe processes and help build the skills necessary for successful conflict resolution. They present us with a new framework for understanding others—a map for making progress through differences that can otherwise overwhelm us....I found the advice in this book honest, practical and above all immensely challenging....Perhaps every president, prime minister and monarch in the world today should be forced to read it. Wouldn't that be a good idea to give peace a chance?"
—Marion James, Sunday's Zaman 2/25/08
Contents
Acknowledgments
Preface
1 Crossing Boundaries
2 Conflict, Culture, and Images of Change
3 Culture: Exploring the River
4 A Journey Toward Cultural Fluency
5 When the Waters of Culture and Conflict Meet
6 Capacities and Skills for Intercultural Conflict Resolution
7 A Map Through Rough Terrain: A Guide for Intercultural Conflict Resolution
8 Full Circle Reflection: Learning from Ourselves
References
Index
About the Authors
Michelle LeBaron is professor of law and director of the UBC Program on Dispute Resolution. She consults on intercultural conflict around the world and is the author of three previous books.
Venashri Pillay is a senior researcher with ACCORD in South Africa and is completing her PhD in conflict analysis and resolution at George Mason University. She has practiced social work in diverse communities in South Africa and the United States.
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