Conflict Across Cultures: A Unique Experience of Bridging Differences - Softcover

Conflict Across Cultures teaches how each of us can build bridges across the chasms that separate different cultures. With insights born of rich experiences, the authors explore metaphor, ritual and storytelling to help people understand one another, and by helping us to recognize what is sacred to others, they help us to find our own sacred ground. -- Dr. Mary-Wynne Ashford, International Physicians for the Prevention of Nuclear War Michelle and colleagues fused, with elegance, their substantial knowledge in the fields of peace, conflict and culture, with stories and experiences, and artistic imagination which made reading this book like a walk in terrain, or a swim in the river...with pleasant friends. -- Amr Abdalla, Ph.D., Professor and Dean for academic Programmes, University for Peace, United Nations Affiliated University I found the advice in this book honest, practical and above all immensely challenging. -- Marion James, Sunday's Zaman (Istanbul) Remarkably readable, and even more valuable for its contribution to understanding the problems that underpin virtually every major conflict in the world today. -- Ambassador John W. McDonald, Chairman, The Institute for Multi-Track Diplomacy Learning to handle cross-cultural conflict is emerging as a central problem in human relations. And no one is better qualified to describe the intricate ins and outs of that learning process than the extraordinary-and extraordinarily honest-team that has written Conflict across Cultures. -- Christopher Honeyman, Conflict Management Consultant and co-editor, The Negociator's Fieldbook

Cultural differences among members of any group-be it a multinational business team or an international family-are frequently the source of misunderstanding and can lead to conflict. With powerful techniques for resolving or at least reducing conflicts, scholars and teachers from around the globe demystify the intricate and important relationship between conflict and culture. Stories, which are at the heart of the book, come from a wide variety of groups and locations, and they give sound counsel for all kinds of settings: business, law, government, non-governmental agencies, schools, communities and families. Conflict across Cultures is written by a new generation of conflict resolution scholars from four parts of the world: Canada, South Africa, Japan and the US. They describe processes and help build the skills necessary for successful conflict resolution. Here is a new framework for understanding others-a map for making progress through differences that can otherwise overwhelm us. Conflict across Cultures offers hope in countering the view that differences must divide us.