Escalation control; Negotiation, mediation, facilitation, and consensus building; of general applicability to environmental problems; written for first and third party participants.
The Resolution of Conflict is a collection of theoretic and experimental investigation into the nature of conflict, and a search for strategies of conflict regulation and resolution.
The Resolution of Conflict will be of interest to those who seek to understand the nature and function of conflict, to distinguish between productive forms of conflict and destructive forms, and to identify strategies for regulating and resolving conflict. This work consists of thirteen chapters divided into three parts, with an index and bibliography. The first seven chapters are theoretic, and make up part one. Chapters eight to twelve are reseach papers, and make up part two. Part three consists of a single concluding essay.
Chapter one introduces the topic of conflict and conflict resolution. It outlines the variables which affect the course of conflict, offers a typology of conflict, discusses the function of conflict, and makes a distinction between destructive and constructive conflicts. Chapter two describes the major differences between cooperative and competative processes, and discusses both procsses as they occur within a group, and between groups. Chapter three discusses intrapsychic conflict, or inner conflict, from four psychological approaches: learning theory, consistency theory, role theory, and psychoanalytic theory. It then summarizes the common findings of these approaches. Chapter four discusses group formation, focusing on the role of cooperation in group formation, and the role that group membership plays in personal identity. Chapter five moves on to discuss intergroup conflicts. It first discusses external conditions which are conducive to intergroup conflict. It then considers the effects of conflict on group cohesiveness, structure and power. Class and race conflict are used as illustrations intergroup conflict. Chapter six explores the roles of threats and promises in conflict, and compares threats and promises to other forms of social influence. Chapter seven outlines a theory of trust and suspicion. The author presents a series of basic definitions ot terms, and of basic psychological assumptions, from which he derives nineteen hypotheses concerning the occurance of a trusting choice. The chapter concludes with a discussion of some forms of pathology of trust.
Chapter eight presents the results of several early experimental studies which employed the Prisoner's Dilemma to explore issues trust and suspicion. Chapter nine presents initial studies exploring the effects of threat and communication upon interpersonal bargaining. Chapter ten studies these issues further. Chapter eleven turns to reseach on structural and attitudinal factors in bargaining. Factors considered include size of the conflict, the role of irrevocable commitment or brinkmanship. Chapter twelve presents experimental studies which compare and evaluate various strategies for inducing cooperation.
The final chapter explores the factors which influence the resolution of conflict. It describes the typical course of destructive conflicts, and of productive conflicts. The author suggests that "the characteristic processes and effects elicited by a given type of social relationship (cooperative or competative) tend also to elicit that type of social relationship." In other words, cooperation breeds cooperation. This chapter explores the conditions needed for the regulation of conflict, and strategies for changing the course of conflicts away from desstructive processes and toward productive processes.
The Resolution of Conflict is an early and insightful investigation of the factors at play in productive and destructive conflicts. Its theoretic discusssions are very accessible for a general audience, and will provide the reader with a excellent basic understanding of conflict and conflict resolution
Tanya Glaser