The need for intergroup reconciliation programmes emerges within the prevailing narrative of cultural conflict. However, failing attempts to resolve conflict at the macro (political) level of society have called for a unique approach that seeks to address these issues creatively at the first point of contact. Therefore, the last twenty years have seen a proliferation of non-profit group workshops and interventions aimed at engaging groups in a diversity of dialogue. To date there have been very few of these interventions that have addressed conflict therapeutically at the micro level of society– at which communities interact directly with another. The aim of this research was to conduct an explorative mixed method study into how an intergroup encounter intervention between Palestinians and Israelis could encourage participants to understand each other as human beings with shared fears, hopes and rights that may surpass assumptions of the other as ‘the enemy’, thereby encouraging participants to ‘give the other a human face’. Conducted with a mixed group of twenty-eight participants, a pre-to-post survey measure analysed behavioural change, while a six-month follow-up interview with four participants explored the impact of participating in the acquaintance seminar on participants lived experiences. Final analysis indicated that while there was a trend towards behavioural change, the outcome was statistically non-significant. Meanwhile interpretive phenomenological analysis produced five key master themes that highlighted the impact of change and the contextual challenges of living with conflict. Managing new relationships and cultural barriers highlighted the key contextual challenges that participants were faced with. This highlights a need for investing resources and training into group conflict programmes that are promoted by key counselling psychology principles of practice. Overall, working with conflict is considered a relevant and unique opportunity for counselling psychologists and group facilitators, most of whom have no formal training or resources for working with conflict resolution in minority groups.
| Identifer | oai:union.ndltd.org:bl.uk/oai:ethos.bl.uk:749393 |
| Date | January 2018 |
| Creators | Hussain, Nora |
| Contributors | Bray, Diane |
| Publisher | University of Roehampton |
| Source Sets | Ethos UK |
| Detected Language | English |
| Type | Electronic Thesis or Dissertation |
| Source | https://pure.roehampton.ac.uk/portal/en/studentthesis/Giving-the-other-a-human-face(d957946d-0a84-413c-bc52-38f235e078b3).html |
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