Culture, worldviews, communication styles, and conflict in forest management

Abstract

This paper explores culture, worldviews, communication styles, and conflict among stakeholders in forest and natural resource management. It addresses the fact that forest managers and stakeholders often speak about forest resources very differently, and it makes suggestions for improving communication among them. It also reviews the history of the development of worldviews regarding the environment. The paper draws from studies of environmental perception, conflict, and communications. A central argument is that culture, values, and communication styles are strongly linked with conflict, and that improved understanding of other cultures-and one's own culture, values, and communication styles-can reduce the negative consequences of conflict and lead to better resource management decisions. We believe that the success of conflict prevention and resolution depends on the ability of all parties-forest managers and stakeholders-to understand and respect all worldviews.

Relevance of social science to the management of natural resources in British Columbia

“…Some research is designed to provide mechanisms for reducing conflict, such as the work of Morford et al (2003) on the relationship between jargon and conflict. A workshop and a video developed from the research have been designed to reduce conflicts that occur as a result of misunderstanding the terminology used during negotiation and public input processes.…”