CR Advisory Board Member Addresses Multiculturalism and Global Conflict Resolution

In two new books, Fathali Moghaddam, professor of Psychology at Georgetown University and member of the Conflict Resolution Advisory Committee, addresses the challenges of dealing with diversity in an increasingly multicultural and interconnected world. While exploring concepts of multiculturalism and global conflict through the lens of psychological science, both books consider ways of organizing society to reduce conflict.

In his book, Multiculturalism and Intergroup Relations: Psychological Implications for Democracy in Global Context (American Psychological Association Press 2008), Moghaddam applies current psychological theories and empirical research on intergroup relations to a variety of cultures and conflicts across the globe. He explores the large-scale migration of refugees fleeing international conflict as well as the effects of 9/11 and the violent conflicts that have erupted in its wake.

In Global Conflict Resolution Through Positioning Analysis (Springer 2008), Moghaddam and co-editors Rom Harré and Naomi Lee, explore a radical new path toward understanding and resolving conflict. “The new path,” they write, “is part of the cultural-narrative turn and emerges primarily from research in psychology, linguistics, micro-sociology and philosophy.” They argue that positioning theory is at this new path’s core, “with its ability to reveal exquisitely subtle undercurrents of meaning and moral framing in conflict situations.”

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Professor Moghaddam was awarded the 2007 Lifetime Achievement Award from the Society for the Study of Peace, Conflict and Violence, Division 48 of the American Psychological Association.