Conflict transformation
Conflict transformation is a comprehensive peacemaking process aimed at altering the social and structural factors that give rise to and sustain violent conflicts over time. Unlike conflict management or resolution, which often focus on suppressing or ending conflicts, conflict transformation acknowledges that conflict can be an essential element of societal growth and change. This approach emphasizes converting destructive conflicts into constructive ones that can fulfill a community's needs and address deeper issues.
Originating in the 1980s with the work of John Paul Lederach, conflict transformation highlights the inadequacy of traditional conflict resolution methods, which may overlook the underlying reasons for conflict. The process involves not just mediation and resolution techniques but also addresses the systemic, socioeconomic, political, and attitudinal underpinnings of violence. It is especially relevant for long-standing conflicts rooted in deep societal divides and aims for a nonviolent, long-term transformation that can reshape interpersonal relationships and community dynamics.
Key initiatives in conflict transformation include community development, peace-building efforts, and training in conflict mediation, all designed to reframe issues and modify dysfunctional decision-making patterns. Ultimately, the goal is to redefine the meaning and perception of conflicts, leveraging them as catalysts for positive social change rather than sources of division.
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Subject Terms
Conflict transformation
Conflict transformation is a peacemaking process that seeks to transform the social and structural factors that support and maintain violent conflicts over the long term. It is a distinct approach from conflict management or conflict resolution in that it recognizes conflict as necessary and integral to societal development. Rather than attempting to resolve or suppress an intractable conflict, conflict transformation focuses on transforming violent, destructive conflict into positive, constructive conflict that can address a society’s needs.
Overview
Conflict transformation is a relatively new approach in the field of conflict and peace studies. John Paul Lederach is credited with having coined the term in the 1980s, during his peacekeeping efforts in Central America. Lederach felt that the term “conflict resolution” was inadequate because of its implicit bias toward ending the outward expression of conflict, while Lederach recognized that conflict happens for a reason, often spurring vital and necessary changes in a community. Conflict transformation includes techniques for conflict resolution and mediation but also goes further, addressing the structural, socioeconomic, political, and attitudinal factors that support and maintain violent conflict.
Conflict-transformation approaches are particularly well suited to addressing long-standing, intractable conflicts that are based on deep-rooted issues. Conflict transformation is a nonviolent process that seeks to address a range of dimensions that support the conflict, from the local to the national level. A long-term approach is necessary to shift the structural, socioeconomic, and behavioral factors that perpetuate the conflict.
Conflict transformation is based on the idea that conflict moves through predictable phases, slowly transforming interpersonal relationships, social organizations, and, ultimately, society itself. It is used to transform the relational and societal patterns that have become embedded in conflict, often via community-development initiatives, peace-building efforts, restorative justice, and training in conflict mediation and organizational leadership, among other initiatives. The main goal of conflict transformation is to modify the goals and approaches of the key players in a conflict by transforming the meaning and perception of the conflict. This process often involves reframing the key issues and altering the dysfunctional rules and patterns that have governed a community’s decision-making processes. Conflict transformation is an important tool for mitigating protracted conflicts and turning destructive conflict into a powerful force for positive social change.
Bibliography
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Lederach, John Paul. Preparing for Peace: Conflict Transformation across Cultures. Syracuse: Syracuse UP, 1995. Print.
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