“Nobody ever told us”: The contribution of intragroup dialogue to reflexive learning about violent conflict.

Abstract

The goal of this study was to explore the contribution to reflexive learning about conflict reality when encountering narratives of the other in intragroup dialogue. That is, dialogue within one national group in the context of a binational conflict. This dialogue was with a group of Jewish-Israeli undergraduate students. The study explored the contribution of the dialogue to the capacity to relate to ongoing conflict relations from perspectives that go beyond binary and oppositional assumptions and positions. This research is based on detailed observations of the dialogue, interviews with group members, and a field diary kept by Michael Sternberg. Findings indicate that, without the immediate need to close ranks in the presence of the outgroup, the intragroup setting supplied opportunities to explore diverse identities, narratives, power structures, and related collective assumptions and to examine alternatives to existing types of conflict engagement. Furthermore, findings indicate the contribution of such processes to the readiness to challenge hegemonic perceptions of conflict reality and cope with the challenges of becoming an active bystander toward the abuse of power relations.

National honor and personal dignity perceptions, legitimization of the narrative of the “other,” and willingness to reconcile: The case of the Israeli–Palestinian conflict.

“…At the practical level, our findings suggest that targeting and facilitating legitimization of the narratives of the “other” via intervention programs, could potentially increase WTR (Sternberg et al, 2018). Future longitudinal studies in “real world” situations, should examine peace education interventions that aim to bridge the gaps between opposing discourses, encourage legitimization of the narrative of the “other” and through this process, promote WTR.…”

Imagine All the People: Negotiating and Mediating Moral Concern through Intergroup Encounters

“…Different possibilities, modes, and models of encounters that require considering a broad range of moral responses have also been identified in research on intergroup encounters and conversations in conflict (Maoz, 2011(Maoz, , 2018Mor et al, 2016;Sternberg, Litvak Hirsch, & Sagy, 2018;Zigenlaub & Sagy, 2020). In her work that predominantly focuses on face-to-face dialogues and encounters with the other group in conflict, Maoz (2011Maoz ( , 2018 defines and discusses the confrontational dialogue in which members of the minority group directly confront members of the majority group with claims about injustice, discrimination, and oppression (Halabi & Sonnenschein, 2004).…”

“…Encountering the Narrative, Suffering, and Agenda of the Other-When and How can this Work Studies in the tradition of the narrative approach to intergroup encounters in conflict relate to the moments in which we encounter the narrative and suffering of the other and to what might determine our response to this essentially difficult encounter ( Bar-On, 2008;Hammack, 2009Hammack, , 2011Maoz, 2011Maoz, , 2018Mor, et al, 2016;Ron & Maoz, 2013;Sternberg et al, 2018;Zigenlaub & Sagy, 2020). Research in this tradition prominently teaches us that such a difficult conversation should be embedded in a longterm, gradually evolving, facilitated dialogue process (Heykoop & Adoch, 2017;Ron & Maoz, 2013;Sternberg, et al, 2018) in order to enable overcoming threat and backlashes (Maoz et al, 2007) and attain some level of acknowledgment or recognition. Importantly, existing research enables us to learn from failures in which the presentation of the narrative and suffering of the outgroup in conflict triggered suspicion, distancing and even verbal violence (Maoz, et al, 2004, Maoz, et al, 2007Mor et al, 2016).…”

Editorial.

“…A seventh paper is on the conflict in Colombia. The role of news websites in promoting a sense of global community is explored in the eighth major paper.The studies by Sternberg, Litvak Hirsch, and Sagy (2018) and Ben Hagai, Whitlatch, and Zurbriggen (2018) present new and in some respects different perspectives on the relationship between intragroup dialogue and intergroup conflict. Both studies focus on young Jews: Ben Hagai et al (2018) on participants in the Birthright trip, a free 10-day trip to Israel available to young Jewish Americans; Sternberg et al ( 2018) on Jewish-Israeli undergraduate students.…”

“…The studies by Sternberg, Litvak Hirsch, and Sagy (2018) and Ben Hagai, Whitlatch, and Zurbriggen (2018) present new and in some respects different perspectives on the relationship between intragroup dialogue and intergroup conflict. Both studies focus on young Jews: Ben Hagai et al (2018) on participants in the Birthright trip , a free 10-day trip to Israel available to young Jewish Americans; Sternberg et al (2018) on Jewish-Israeli undergraduate students. Whereas participants in the Birthright trip emerged from intragroup dialogues with a stronger endorsement of a “root” Jewish-Israeli narrative and a firmer rejection of the Palestinian narrative, Ben Hagai et al (2018) report on a project in which intragroup dialogues led to more critical self-reflection, as well as openness to considering alternative arrangements to the present Israeli-Palestinian situation.…”