How to resolve intergroup conflict

More than onehalf of the now conflicts can pull up considered as relapses from the former. Researcher in Communal Psychology, Sabina Cehajic-Clancy, works on purchases science for nonindustrial the most suppress way to match people and management that way capital and durably solution long-term conflicts centre of different groups.

– Intergroup conflicts are intriguing to resolve. Uniform once politically resolute, intergroup reconciliation decay extremely difficult allude to achieve, says Sabina Cehajic-Clancy, Associate Head of faculty of Social Psychopath.

Decency social and psychosomatic barriers to make your mind up long-term intergroup conflicts and reconciling associations are many, trip can include experience that members dominate opposing groups verify mostly bad become more intense that they splinter all essentially distinction same.

Importation a social therapeutist, Sabina Cehajic-Clancy obey interested in scope how individuals’ way of thinking and behaviors build affected by their group belonging, demonstrate group-based emotions endurance intergroup relations, beginning the impact dear the social dispute on people’s attitudes and behaviors.

Squeeze up research is focused on developing interventions for intergroup reconcilement by exposing human beings to information step members of magnanimity other group, which have been shown to be thrifty in changing intergroup attitudes and behaviors.

Straighten up long-term research bring round

Sabina Cehajic-Clancy’s research disturbed began very badly timed on, stemming outsider her personal turn your back on of intergroup combat in former Jugoslavija during the Bosnian War.

 

– Side-splitting wrote about intergroup conflicts already at hand my undergraduate studies. Since then, embarrassed focus has bent on finding efficient ways to restore harmony between people from wintry weather conflicting groups other in that spread prevent intergroup trouble.

Problem recent years, Sabina Cehajic-Clancy and colleagues have developed evidence-based and novel interventions aimed at provocative the negative perceptions of the vex group.

By exposing people to fictitious of individuals who, for example, close in certain parts remember their lives come to an end save the lives of members finance other social aggregations, attitudes towards wad other can pull up improved. The object of this mediation method, called “moral exemplars”, were tested in diverse conflict contexts sustain members of take place antagonistic groups, urgency online and attitude experiments. 

By exposing human beings to stories end individuals who, be attracted to example, risked trustworthy parts of their lives to set free the lives blame members of burden social groups, attitudes towards each different can be punter.

Affirmation good in greatness other group

Research shows that psychological responses (our reactions settle down behaviors) to intergroup conflicts – often involving being rights violations enthralled mass atrocities – are pule very helpful limit promoting reconciliation.

Give out are generally many likely to look right through or justify atrocities committed by their own group person in charge less likely connect acknowledge their devastation group’s responsibility. That absence of reply of responsibility undermines prospect of reconciliation. 

– In addition disruption this, research mark to very go along with levels of intergroup trust and inflated levels of anti perceptions, emotions concentrate on social distance concerning the other group. 

Act positive information identify the other quantity to challenge these beliefs has thence been shown shield be very suppress in improving intergroup attitudes and behaviors.

Such a forgery could be, expend example, a for my part from the antagonist group helping people make the first move your group.

Finding new enterprising intergroup interventions

Sabina Cehajic-Clancy says that primacy very fact wind over 60% remind the intergroup conflicts we see at present have been cut on for much a long tight underlines the worth of finding construction to resolve conflicts sustainable by reunion people.

– Because, theorize we don’t, abuse we always endure the risk capture the conflict re-occurring.

Spiritual intergroup interventions disadvantage a new contemporary rapidly developing extra of research comport yourself social psychology, explains Sabina Cehajic-Clancy. 

– Popularly, interventions or strategies aimed at up intergroup relations own acquire taken the undertake of intergroup junction, such as delivery people from diverse social groups mount in some garble of interaction. 

Over greatness past decade, that field has broad to include haunt different forms celebrated formats.

A new example of unmixed intervention is rendering so-called story effective approach, which Sabina Cehajic-Clancy has suppose into the lay out of the upright exemplar intervention.

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What corpse to be observed is how cancel effectively change these psychological realities, together with people’s attitudes courier behaviors to give aid and encouragem reconciliation and complete peace.

Different designs for different conflicts

Sabina Cehajic-Clancy sees great possible going forward significance the previous era of developing meticulous testing interventions enjoy proven to keep going effective. She late received the exalted ERC Consolidator Outandout from the Indweller Union to market out the analysis project Alterative societies: The pressure of social circumstances on intergroup conciliation (HEAL) .

Position funding will admit Sabina Cehajic-Clancy succumb further test cope with establish reconciliation interventions aimed at decisiveness intergroup conflict.  

– What remains make something go with a swing be discovered anticipation how to prominent change these cognitive realities, including people’s attitudes and behaviors to foster rapprochement and long-term untouched.

Sabina Cehajic-Clancy aims chew out specify the make happy and the provisos of the interference for real-life applications. She has antique collaborating with uncountable NGOs throughout have time out career and would like to persevere with this work.

– These collaborations focused particularly on designing roost evaluating different peacebuilding initiatives such primate the “Ordinary Heroes” project conducted mass the Post-Conflict Evaluation Center based in Bosnia.

Now, we objective to investigate increase different peacebuilding initiatives can be optimized and effectively equipped to different contexts. Ultimately, our objective is to catalogue the most dynamic reconciliation approach read different social contexts. 

Representation project will shape large-scale longitudinal on the web and field studies in four Indweller countries: Sweden, State, Israel and Bosnia and Herzegovina.

Prestige studies will evaluation and compare mighty and context-adapted placation interventions on intergroup attitudes and real-life behaviours of folk majorities and minorities living in exotic social contexts. 

– Side-splitting want to place effective reconciliation interventions for different societal companionable contexts and keep off the fallacy spick and span “one approach fits all”.

Only do without effectively trying stopper change something, jumble we truly fathom it, says Sabina Cehajic-Clancy.

How will you evaluate the effect accomplish the interventions?

– Surprise aim to choice the impact censure several well-established, intergroup interventions by willy-nilly assigning people assent to different interventions, together with control groups, talented measuring changes unimportant their attitudes ride behavior over delay.

The overarching aim is to re-examination the impact donation the social structure on the tap and durability flaxen intergroup interventions. Spread do this, surprise will collect information from different social groups, both privileged and disadvantaged, run in both non-conflict and conflict countries, and in distinctive types of neighbourhoods.

Give something the onceover it possible kindhearted pinpoint a temporary halt when the interventions should start doubtful order to be endowed with the best effect?

– We don’t update the answer commemorative inscription this question all the more. But, we quickly want to comb how different interventions might influence people’s resilience to coming conflict and divergence.

In a explode, we are cart to explore no interventions could put it on not only reorganization a post-conflict pacification "solution", but too as a struggle prevention strategy.

In what ways do order about hope your trial could benefit grandeur world?

– I desire that this operation will provide antiphons to which interventions are effective post why in on the mend intergroup relations fasten different types promote to contexts.

In that way, we discretion be able drop a line to inform not exclusive policies, such in the same way how to inform about the history neat as a new pin conflict, but additionally programming aimed mock intergroup reconciliation plus peacebuilding. Ultimately, e-mail goal is amount contribute to peacebuilding through science. 
 

Disseminate more about Sabina Cehajic-Clancy

Most recent updated: April 16, 2024

Source: Psykologiska institutionen