2004 Workshop on Humiliation and Violent Conflict
representing the
Fourth Annual HumanDHS Conference
November 18-19, 2004
(Thursday: 10:00am - 7:30pm & Friday: 10.00am - 5:30pm)
Columbia University, Teachers College, Room Horace Mann 433
525 West 120th Street, New York, NY 10027
Thursday November 18, 5:30 pm - 8:00 pm
Networking Reception that is open to the public
Columbia University, Teachers College, Milbank Chapel
Convened by SIPA - Center for International Conflict Resolution
on behalf of Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies (HumanDHS) project of the
Columbia University Conflict Resolution Network (CU-CRN) as
2004 Annual Columbia Round Table on Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies in New York
The Research Workshop is made possible by a generous contribution of the
Slifka Foundation
Please click on the pictures or here to see more photos
• Rationale
• Methodology
• Frame
• List of Conveners
• Program (Day One & Day Two)
• Details of the Convening Organizations
• Papers: Prelininary Papers & Final Papers
• Pictures of our meeting
• Pictures with Morton Deutsch
• Newsletter 3, written as report subsequent to our workshop
Rationale, Methodology, and Frame
Rationale
Given the current context of the field of international conflict, including the very recent illustrations of treatment of Iraqi prisoners, the impact of emotions on conflict has become one of the most important questions worldwide. However, there are only scattered publications in the research and applied literature that would address issues on conflict and emotion directly, as well as their relations and their impact on public policy.
This first two-day workshop was held at Teachers College, Columbia University, in 2004, hosted by the Columbia University's Conflict Resolution Network (CU-CRN), with special help from SIPA – Center for International Conflict Resolution (CICR) and the International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution (ICCCR).
CICR on behalf of CU-CRN and HumanDHS invites selected groups of scholars, counselors, conflict resolution practitioners, mediators, and teachers among other professions for the two-day workshops to explore issues of conflict and emotions and its application to actual negotiations and diplomacy. The aim is to particularly probe the role of the notion of humiliation from the two different angles of conflict and emotion.
The meetings are envisaged as a learning community gathering, interactive and highly participatory. The purpose is to create an open space to identify and sharpen our understanding of the discourse and debate on emotion and conflict and the role that might, or might not be played by humiliation within this field. We continue this effort in our follow-up workshops.
We see humiliation as entry point into broader analysis and not as "single interest scholarship." We are aware that most participants focus on other aspects than humiliation in their work and have not thought about humiliation much, or even at all. We do not expect anybody to do so beforehand. We would love that everybody comes with his/her background, his/her theoretical concepts and tools, and that we, during the conference, reflect together. We invite everybody to use their focus and give a thought to whether the notion of humiliation could be enriching, or not, and if yes, in what way. We warmly invited diverging and dissenting views.
Methodology
We chose a dialogical methodology that stresses interaction and participation because we wished to create an atmosphere of openness and respectful inquiry through three roundtables and the use of Open Space Technology. We believe that notions such as dignity and respect for equal dignity are important not only for conflict resolution, but also for meetings such as this workshop. The name Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies attempts to express this. We wish to strive for consistency between what we think are important values for conflict resolution and the way we conduct our work and our meetings.
Every roundtable was opened by brief remarks by each participant to present their entry points into the inquiry. In order to facilitate feedback, we were asking that papers/notes were sent in advance. A brief synopsis of 1 to 4 pages, with only major references, was available beforehand through this site. Longer papers were welcome as well, not least for the envisaged publications of the results of the meeting.
All participants are warmly invited to send in their final papers as soon as they can. We envisage to combine your papers with the notes that were taken by Rebecca Klein during the workshop and the cards that many wrote during the "five minutes long reflective intermissions."
We would like to ask for your help with finding a publisher for an edited version.
Frame
by Linda Hartling, 2004, Ph.D., Associate Director, Jean Baker Miller Training Institute, Wellesley College, Boston, USA
In our meetings we aim at creating a humiliation-free, collaborative learning environment characterized by mutual respect, mutual empathy, and openness to difference. The perspective of "appreciative enquiry" is a useful frame of our work. Our HumanDHS efforts are not just about the work we do together, but also about HOW WE WORK TOGETHER. At appropriate points during our meetings, for example at the end of each day, we take a moment to reflect on the practices observed that contributed to an appreciative/humiliation-free learning experience.
It is important to emphasize that an appreciative approach is not about expecting people to agree. In fact, differences of opinion enrich the conversation and deepen people's understanding of ideas. Perhaps, this could be conceptualized as "waging good conflict," which means practicing radical respect for differences and being open to a variety of perspectives and engaging others without contempt or rankism. As we have seen in many fields, contempt and rankism drains energy away from the important work that needs to be done. Most people only know "conflict" as a form of war within a win/lose frame. "Waging good conflict," on the other side, is about being empathic and respectful, making room for authenticity, creating clarity, and growth.
List of Conveners
Andrea Bartoli, Ph.D.
Director of the Center for International Conflict Resolution (CICR); Chairman of the Columbia University Conflict Resolution Network (CU-CRN)
Evelin Gerda Lindner, M.D., Ph.D. (Dr. med.), Ph.D. (Dr. psychol.)
Social Scientist, Founding Director and President of Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies (HumanDHS), anchored at the Columbia University Conflict Resolution Network, New York, furthermore affiliated to the University of Oslo, Department of Psychology (see http://folk.uio.no/evelinl/), Associate Professor at the Norwegian University of Science and Technology (NTNU) in Trondheim, Department of Psychology (see http://psyweb.svt.ntnu.no/ansatte/), and affiliated to the Maison des Sciences de l'Homme, Paris, teaching, furthermore, in South East Asia, the Middle East, and other places globally.
Judit Révész
Lawyer, Researcher, NY Director of Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies, Member of the HumanDHS Core Team.
The participants of this workshop thank Judit Révész for her untiring work to make this workshop be a success.
Program
Day One, Thursday, November, 18, 2004
10:00 am Welcoming All Participants
Donald Klein and Linda Hartling set the frame of our meeting within "Appreciative Enquiry" and we created a list of agreed upon norms having to do with the nature and tone of our dialogue.
10:15 am Participants Presented Themselves
11:00 am Round Table 1 (2 hours): What's Relevant in a Destructive Conflict?
Moderator: Beth Fisher-Yoshida
Participants:
- Morton Deutsch, Columbia University, Destructive Conflict and Oppression
- Andrea Bartoli, Columbia University, Deconstructing International Deadly Conflicts
- Beth Fisher-Yoshida, Columbia University, Cultural Conflicts As An Opportunity for Transformative Learning
- Heidi and Guy Burgess, University of Colorado, Conflict Research, Introduction to Their Work (2004)
Project Overview: Advancing the Peace and Conflict Resolution Fields: A Next-generation Brainstorming Project
Developing 20-year Strategies for Addressing the Hard Questions
Conflict Information Systems
Taking the Peace and Conflict Resolution Fields Outside the "Box"
Intractable Conflict Knowledge Base Project and CRInfo –The Conflict Resolution Information Source
- Philip Brown, New Jersey Center for Character Education, Humiliation, Bullying and Caring in School Communities
- Lourdes Quisumbing, Asia-Pacific Network for International Education and Values Education (APNIEVE), Former Education Minister of the Philippines, Education and Conflict (C) & her granddaughter Jennifer, Columbia student
Citizenship Education for Better World Societies: A Holistic Approach
Paper read at the 8th UNESCO APEID International Conference on Education
29 November 2002, Bangkok
and
Educating Young Children for a Peaceful World
Second World Forum on Early Care and Education
16-19 May 2000, Singapore
- Hroar Klempe, Trondheim University, Norway, Symbols and Conflict
- James E. Jones, Manhattanville College, CUNY, The Third Force: A Practical, Community-Building: Approach to Settling Destructive Conflicts (C)
- Roberta L. Kosberg, Department of Communication, Curry College, Milton, MA, Communication and Conflict
- Joshua Weiss, Harvard University, The Role of the Third Side (TBC)
- Susan L. Podziba, Program On Negotiation at Harvard Law School (PON), The Human Side of Complex Public Policy Mediation
1:00 pm Lunch
2:00 pm Round Table 2 (2 hours): Is Humiliation Relevant in a Destructive Conflict?
Moderators: Carlos Sluzki and Donald C. Klein
Participants:
- Carlos Sluzki, George Mason University, Elements of Humiliation-Shame Dynamics for Computational Modeling and Analysis of Real-Life Scenarios
- Donald Klein, Union Institute and University, Appreciative Psychology and Humiliation & his granddaughter Rebecca Klein
- Linda Hartling, Wellesley College, Boston, Shame and Humiliation From Isolation to Relational Transformation
- Paul A. Stokes, National University of Ireland, Dublin, We Are All Humiliated
- Bertram Wyatt-Brown, University of Florida, Honor, Shame, and Iraq in American Foreign Policy
- Peter T. Coleman, Columbia University, Conflict and Humiliation (together with Jennifer Goldman)
- Jennifer Goldman, Columbia University, Conflict and Humiliation (together with Peter T. Coleman)
- Gay Rosenblum-Kumar, Public Administration officer in the Governance and Public Administration Branch of the UN Department of Economic and Social Affairs, Humiliation, Conflict and Public Policy
and Aurora Deuss
- Evelin Lindner, Columbia University, Humiliation in a Globalizing World: Does Humiliation Become the Most Disruptive Force?
- Victoria Firmo-Fontan, Iraq and Humiliation (only Thursday)
4:00 pm - 5:30 pm Wrapping up the Day
5:30 pm - 8:00 pm Networking Reception at Milbank Chapel - Open to the Public
We had a general discussion on the future of our network's work.
Day Two, Friday, November 19, 2004
10:00 am Welcome
10:30 am Round Table 3 (2 hours): Can the Notion of Humiliation be Useful for Public Policy Planning? What Can We Envisage As Best Practice Models?
Moderators: Donald C. Klein and Linda Hartling
Participants:
- Donald Klein, Union Institute and University, Appreciative Psychology and Humiliation
- Linda Hartling, Wellesley College, Boston, Shame and Humiliation: From Isolation to Relational Transformation
- Daniel L. Shapiro, Harvard University, The Nature of Humiliation (only Friday)
- Arie Nadler, Tel Aviv University, How Dynamics of Humiliation Can Be Overcome by Apology
- Richard Slaven, Brandeis University, Massachusetts, Humiliation from the Business and Financing Perspective
- Neil Altman, New York University, Humiliation, Retaliation and Violence (only Friday)
- Brigid Donelan, Chief and Focal Point on Conflict Resolution and Peace-building in the UN's Division for Social Policy and Development, DESA (New York), and Patricia O'Hagan, Humiliation and Resiliency in the Social Integration Process: Towards a model framework and policy dialogue at the United Nations (only Friday)
- Kathleen Modrowski, Long Island University, and Shulamit Koenig, People's Movement for Human Rights Education, Human Rights Education: From Humiliation towards Living in Dignity (The Human Rights Cities Model)
- Elisabeth Scheper, Harvard University, The Role of Humiliation in Asian State-Civil Society Relationship in Historic Perspective
- Duke Duchscherer, Center for Nonviolent Communication, Nonviolent Communication as Core Principle for any Public Policy to Prevent Humiliation Dynamics
12:30 pm Lunch
2:30 pm "Open Space" (2 1/2 hours) on Future Directions of Our Work
(interrupted by small pauses, facilitated by Alan Klein)
Donald Klein explained the Open Space design as follows: It involves creating a kind of "marketplace" of possibilities based on topics nominated by participants. The only requirement is that whoever nominates the topic, acts as the convener of the discussion of the topic and takes responsibility for having notes taken. A report is subsequently made about the essence of what was discussed, including any conclusions or recommendations, at a plenary session following the topic groups.
The Open Space design has the advantage of focussing on whatever is of greatest interest to participants at the moment. It allows for parallel discussion of multiple topics, followed by a period of sharing and general discussion.
5:00 pm - 5.30 pm Conclusion
Details of the Convening Organizations
The Center for International Conflict Resolution (CICR) is part of the Columbia University Conflict Resolution Network (CU-CRN), as is the International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution (ICCCR), and Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies (HumanDHS) that aims at contributing to the resolution of international deadly conflict through research, teaching and fieldwork.
CICR's location within the Institute of War and Peace Studies at Columbia University 's School of Public and International Affairs allows for research collaborations inside and outside of the university with academics and practitioners from governmental, non-governmental and international organizations. The CICR faculty advisory includes Professors Richard Betts, Page Fortna, Robert Jervis and Jack Snyder. Former U.S. Senator George Mitchell joined the Center as a Senior Fellow in July 2002.
The Columbia University Conflict Resolution Network (CU-CRN) was founded in 1997 by a voluntary group of faculty members from throughout the University interested in conflict resolution. The result of their efforts was a broad-based multidisciplinary conflict resolution resource for the entire Columbia community to use to strengthen the research, teaching and training initiatives of its independent schools and departments.
The International Center for Cooperation and Conflict Resolution (ICCCR) was founded in 1986 by Morton Deutsch. It is at present headed by Peter Coleman, with Beth Fisher-Yoshida as Associate Director. ICCCR is an innovative Center dedicated to advancing the study and practice of conflict resolution. ICCCR's mission is an educational one: to help individuals, schools, communities, businesses and governments better understand the nature of conflict and develop the skills and settings that enable them to resolve conflict constructively.
Human Dignity and Humiliation Studies (HumanDHS) was founded by Evelin Lindner in 2002 as a partner institute of the Columbia University Conflict Resolution Network. HumanDHS's mission is to contribute to reducing - and ultimately eliminating - destructive disrespect and humiliation around the world. HumanDHS's efforts focus on generating research, disseminating information, applying creative educational methods, as well as devising pilot projects and policy strategies.
Papers
All participants are warmly invited to send in their papers as soon as they can. We envisage combining your papers with the notes that were taken by Rebecca Klein during the workshop and the cards that many wrote during the "five minutes long reflective intermissions."
We would like to ask for your help with finding a publisher for an edited version.
Please see further down the papers/notes that participants sent in prior to the workshop so that everybody could get acquainted with all others beforehand.
Please ask the authors for their authorization if you wish to quote them!
Final Papers
Morton Deutsch
Oppression and Conflict
Paper presented at the Interrupting Oppression and Sustaining Justice Working Conference at ICCCR, NY, February 27-29, 2004.
Jennifer S. Goldman, Peter T. Coleman
How Humiliation Fuels Intractable Conflict: The Effects of Emotional Roles on Recall and Reactions to Conflictual Encounters
Work in progress, Teachers College, Columbia University, 2005.
Evelin Lindner
Humiliation in a Globalizing World: Does Humiliation Become the Most Disruptive Force? (2004)
See the same text here, as short summary, short table, executive summary, and longer paper (not to be cited without author's authorization).
Preliminary Papers/Notes
Please see further down the papers/notes that participants sent in prior to the workshop so that everybody could get acquainted with all others beforehand.
Please ask the authors for their authorisation if you wish to quote them!
See here the work by:
Andrea Bartoli
Linda Hartling
Donald Klein
Paul A. Stokes
Victoria Firmo-FontanMorton Deutsch
Destructive Conflict and Oppression (2004)
See for the long version
Oppression and Conflict
Paper presented at the Interrupting Oppression and Sustaining Justice Working Conference at ICCCR, NY, February 27-29, 2004.Peter T. Coleman and Jennifer Goldman
Conflict and Humiliation (2004)Sara Cobb
"Humiliation" as Positions in Narratives: Implications for Policy Development (2004)Carlos Sluzki
Elements of Humiliation-Shame Dynamics for Computational Modeling and Analysis of Real-Life Scenarios (2004)Bertram Wyatt-Brown
Honor, Shame, and Iraq in American Foreign Policy (2004)Paul A. Stokes
We Are All Humiliated (2004)Daniel L. Shapiro
The Nature of Humiliation (2004)Lourdes R. Quisumbing
Citizenship Education for Better World Societies: A Holistic Approach
Paper read at the 8th UNESCO APEID International Conference on Education, 29 November 2002, Bangkok
Educating Young Children for a Peaceful World
Second World Forum on Early Care and Education
16-19 May 2000, Singapore
Values Education for Human SolidarityArie Nadler
Going beyond guilt and revenge: The effects of admitting responsibility and expressing empathy for the enemy's suffering on inter-group reconciliation (2004)Heidi and Guy Burgess
Introduction to Their Work (2004)
Project Overview: Advancing the Peace and Conflict Resolution Fields. A Next-generation Brainstorming Project
Developing 20-year Strategies for Addressing the Hard Questions
Conflict Information Systems
Taking the Peace and Conflict Resolution Fields Outside the "Box"Hroar Klempe
Reflections on ‘Conflict’ in Cultural Perspective (2004)Philip Brown
Humiliation, Bullying and Caring in School Communities (2004)Susan L. Podziba
The Human Side of Complex Public Policy Mediation (2004)James E. Jones
The Third Force: A Practical, Community-Building: Approach to Settling Destructive Conflicts (2004)
Muslim Peacebuilding after 9/11
Paper presented at The Islamic Society of North America Fourth Annual Islamic Conflict Resolution Symposium. "Muslim Peacebuilding after 9/11." Westin O'Hare, Chicago IL, April 18 – 20, 2003.Neil Altman
Humiliation, Retaliation, and Violence, in Tikkun Magazine, January/February 2004Gay Rosenblum-Kumar
Humiliation, Conflict and Public Policy (2004)Brigid Donelan and Patricia O'Hagan
Humiliation and Resiliency in the Social Integration Process: Towards a model framework and policy dialogue at the United Nations (2004)Joshua Weiss
The Role of the Third Side (2004)Annette Anderson-Engler
Humiliation and Displaced Identity (2004)Miriam Marton
Relevance of Sexual Violence Against Female Noncombatant Victims of Destructive Conflict in the Study of Humiliation (2004)Duke Duchscherer
Nonviolent Communication as Core Principle for Any Public Policy
to Prevent Humiliation Dynamics (2004)Kathleen Modrowski
Human Rights Education: From Humiliation towards Living in Dignity (The Human Rights Cities Model) (2004)Thomas J. Scheff
Thoughts in Response to Blind Trust (2004) by V. Volkan, a Theory of Collective Violence (2004)
