The purpose of this study was to develop a theoretical understanding of the relationship between empathy, cross-community contact, and religiosity and the impact on forgiveness for Catholics and Protestants in Northern Ireland. Based on the existing literature, three distinct guiding questions emerged: 1) "How are members from the Catholic and Protestant communities conceptualizing and defining forgiveness?", 2) "What role does religion and religiosity play in the conceptualization and process of forgiving members of the Protestant or Catholic communities?" and 3) "How does contact with members of the Catholic or Protestant community impact forgiveness and empathy?"Using a snowball sampling method, 17 participants ages 19-30 were identified and interviewed for 60-90 minutes. A modified grounded theory design was used to guide data collection and analysis, resulting in several main themes. The main themes that emerged from this study included a deeper understanding of forgiveness and the peace process from the perspective of participants, glimpses into the influences on their likeliness to forgive, and insight into the impact of cross-community contact. Forgiveness was universally valued by all participants, although this importance was balanced with concerns related to the interrelationships between politics, the peace process, justice, and the definition of forgiveness.Forgiveness was primarily defined by participants as the right of the individual, and as a means to interrupt a cycle of revenge. Among these responses to this topic, there was uncertainty about whether forgiveness could take place without an apology, and even greater confusion about whether forgiveness and justice could exist side-by-side. In addition, cross-community contact also seemed to influence the development of empathy and forgiveness between Catholics and Protestants. These findings were discussed in relation to Allport's (1954) contact hypothesis and Dixon et al.'s (2005) recent critique of the contact literature. In general, these results appeared to be consistent with previous literature on forgiveness, the contact hypothesis, and collective guilt assignment. There was evidence to indicate that contact was a necessary, but not sufficient condition for forgiveness. Limitations for the study and implications for practice and research are discussed. / Department of Counseling Psychology and Guidance Services

This Thesis is concerned with the development of a strategic model for assisting with the implementation of Best Value into policing in Northern Ireland. Best Value is a legislative requirement for public sector organisations that is primarily concerned with improving the efficiency and effectiveness of policing; thereby improving the overall quality of service provided to the community. This study approaches the issue of Best Value implementation from the perspective of organisational culture. It seeks to assess the impact of organisational culture on the implementation of Best Value and to provide senior managers within PSNI with a strategic model to assist with full and effective implementation. The thesis opens with an examination of the history of policing in Northern Ireland and relates the development of the organisational culture of the service to the influence of the lengthy period of conflict and violence known as 'The Troubles' that made up the external environment in which police officers delivered a service to the community. The background and rationale of Best Value are explored, and through a detailed review of literature, the main operating principles of Best Value are identified. It is through the use of the Best Value principles that the current organisational culture of the PSNI was examined through a research strategy that had a balanced approach of qualitative and quantitative methods. The analysis of the data gleaned from the research identified a significant level of negativity towards Best Value. This was such that if strategic measures were not developed to assist with implementation, this would have led to potential improvements in service delivery and benefits for the Northern Ireland community being lost. Having examined the organisational culture of PSNI with regard to Best Value the study concludes that there is a need for a strategy to be used that effectively manages the influences of the organisational culture. The proposed strategy addresses issues that will directly impact the organisational culture, and provides a series of practical Constructs that can be introduced by PSNI. The strategy provides an effective framework to enable effective Best Value implementation.

This thesis outlines the evolution and roles of the political fronts in Northern Ireland and their potential for attaining political change. It will assess the impact of a number of selected 'variables', both 'internal' and 'external', on the utility (or lack of utility) of these fronts. The variables that have been selected for consideration are: 1) Ideology, structure and leadership, 2) The notion of violence as a habit, 3) Popular support, 4) State response and 5) Other factors and events in the External Environment. Alexander George's 'structured, focused, comparison' methodology will be employed and the selected cases are the Irish Republican Army, the Ulster Defence Association and the Ulster Volunteer Force. Although all of the 'variables' have had a significant impact the thesis argues that the greatest motivation behind the use of Simi Fein has been the desire to mobilise or tap perceived existing support. In the case of the loyalist political fronts the domestic external environment, specifically the perception that the loyalist working classes had been manipulated by 'respectable' unionist politicians, was the most important factor behind their greater use. Paradoxically, it is unionist culture (such as its 'law abiding' nature and division of labour ethos) that has presented the most significant obstacle to their utility. The thesis will then assess whether or not political fronts represent moderation towards the use of violence on the part of the groups. It will suggest that they have in the loyalist cases. Although the following argues that political fronts are very much part of the 'terrorist machinery' as the political voices and propaganda outlets for terrorist groups, and that it is a misconception to view them as the 'moderate half of a movement, the thesis will contend that Sinn Fein has also ultimately come to represent moderation towards the use of violence. The conclusion will then suggest that the selected variables be tested in other examples and, assuming that Sinn Fein has come to represent moderation towards the use of violence, will then attempt to draw some lessons from the case of the IRA and its political front that might be considered when studying other cases.

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This thesis seeks to delineate what change in divided societies such as Northern Ireland is possible. Two steps are necessary to answer this question: first, to explain the potency of nationalism. I contend that taking the evolutionary history of humans and a human need to belong into account is essential for an understanding of A.D. Smith's ethno-symbolist approach to nationalism. We need to acknowledge that human beings emerged from small-scale settings and are therefore conservative beings who seek those patterns of familiarity that make up the ordinary ‘everyday'. They are also prejudiced beings, as prejudice helps to break down a complex world into digestible pieces. The ethnic state excluding an ethnic ‘other' is an answer to these calls for simplicity. By establishing an apparent terra firma, a habitus, symbols of an ethnic past and national present speak of nationalist narratives that provide a sense of ontological security. In (Northern) Ireland, ethno-national communities based on prejudiced understandings of history have long been established. In this second step I maintain that change that violates the core potent national narratives cannot be achieved. The Provisional IRA's change from insurrection to parliament became feasible because a radical break with republican dogmas was avoided. Sinn Féin, despite a rhetorical move towards ‘reconciliation', still seek to outmanoeuvre the unionist ‘other'. The history of Irish socialism, on the other hand, has been a failure, as it embodied a radical attempt to banish the ‘other' from the national narrative. Regarding ‘post-conflict' Northern Ireland, I argue for a peacebuilding approach that leaves the confinements of hostile identity politics, as these mass guarantors of ontological security possess only limited potential for relationship transformation. We need to appreciate those almost invisible acts of empathy and peace that could be found even in Northern Ireland's darkest hours.

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