3. Read the text again and complete the following sentences with one word.

1. Personal conflict, studied by psychologists, is usually opposed to the conflicts that appear in ___________.

2. Political science is particularly interested in studying groups of people having common purposes or interests, also known as _____________.

3. Organisations such as parliament and the court system that play a significant role in the making, carrying out, and enforcing laws and managing conflicts about them are called political _____________.

4. The study of conflict in much easier in democratic society than under _____________.

5. The research into causes of conflict encourages political scientists pay more attention to social and economic ______________.

4. Summarise the text in 130-150 words. In your summary try to use the following words and phrases.

* Appendix 2 p. 148

aggressive instincts, ability to compromise, group coherence, and group fragmentation, decision-making procedures, governments, interrelationships, at the community level, nationwide, ethnic rivalries, internal disputes

4. Discuss the following statements in small groups. Support your opinion with examples and arguments.

Remember to:

• make a plan before you start to write

• organise your report logically

• use the key vocabulary of the unit

• look at Appendix 2 p.148 for proper linkers

• support your opinion with examples

• check your report for errors when it is ready

• apply audio and visual aids if necessary

• “In dwelling, live close to the ground. In thinking, keep to the simple. In conflict, be fair and generous. In governing, don't try to control. In work, do what you enjoy. In family life, be completely present.” (Tao Te Ching)

• “Mankind must evolve for all human conflict a method which rejects revenge, aggression, and retaliation. The foundation of such a method is love.” (Martin Luther King, Jr.)

• “Peace is not merely the absence of visible conflict. Only a just peace based on the inherent rights and dignity of every individual can truly be lasting.” (Barack Obama)

• “The only way to get the best of an argument is to avoid it.” (Dale Carnegie)

Unit 3. Culture and conflict

1. Work with a partner to discuss the following questions.

* Appendix 3 p.153

1. Can a conflict emerge in a “cultured” society?

2. Can cultural differences lead to conflict? If yes, give examples.

3. How do you understand the term “cultural distance”?

2. Read the text quickly and find the answers to the questions from exercise 1.

A report that appeared in the New York Times claimed that on January 9, 1991, at a meeting where the Foreign Minister of Iraq, Tariq Aziz, met the Secretary of State of the United Slates, James Baker, they miscommunicated. According to the report. Baker was very clear that the United States would attack if Iraq did not leave Kuwait. But he said it calmly. The miscommunication occurred because next to Aziz was seated Saddam Hussein's brother, who paid attention only to how Baker talked, rather than to what he said. He reported back to Baghdad "the Americans will not attack. They are weak. They are calm. They are not angry. They are only talking."

We do know that Western individualist cultures sample mostly the content of communications, whereas Eastern collectivist cultures sample mostly the context of communication. Thus, it is plausible that Hussein’s brother, who had little exposure to the West, did not sample the conversation correctly. Also Baker did not throw anything at Aziz to show that he was angry. He acted calmly. It is doubtful that Baker could have thrown anything. People cannot change their behavior that drastically, just because they are interacting with members of other cultures. We do not know what report Aziz gave to Hussein, but it is plausible that Hussein paid special attention to his brother’s assessment, because trust in collectivist cultures is much greater within the intimate in-group than within the outer in-group. In any case, we do know that a war took place alter that meeting. Cultural differences often cause miscommunications and conflict.

Conflict is greater when the two cultures are very different than when they are similar. Technically this difference is called “cultural distance”. Cultural distance is greater when people speak different languages. Even speaking languages that are related can be a problem. There are many funny examples of mistranslations. For example, the ancient Greek root of sympathetic is “to feel together”. That is fairy close to the English meaning. But modem Greek, Italian, Spanish, and French use terms that are derived from that root yet mean “a nice, pleasant person.” So “I am sympathetic” does not translate correctly into “Je suis sympatique!”

Of course, what happens when languages are members of the same language family (say, Indo-European) can be even more of a problem when the languages have very different structures (e.g. tonal or click languages).

Cultural distance is also greater when people have different social structures, such as family structures. Todd (1983) has identified eight types of family structure, and simple terms such as “aunt” may convey different meanings when the family structure is different.

Religion, of course, can be a great source of differences in points of view. Even when one knows that the other person believes something different, there is the problem that humans use themselves as the anchors for such judgments. The diplomat may not believe that it is possible for the other diplomat to have such ‘outlandish’ beliefs. A well-established social psychological phenomenon is called the ‘false consensus’ effect (Mullen, 1985). Even when people know about this bias, they cannot wipe it out (Krueger & Clement, 1994). The phenomenon is that if we agree with a particular position, we believe that most other people also agree with it; if we disagree with a particular position, we believe that most people disagree with it. The phenomenon is even stronger when we interact with people who are similar to us in dress, profession, and other characteristics.

Differences in standards of living can create cultural distance. When the cost of sending a letter is a substantial fraction of one's budget, one may not be as likely to send the letter as when the cost is trivial in relation to one’s budget.

3. Read the text again. Find in the text examples of conflict caused by the following factors.

1. differences between collectivist and individualist cultures

2. different languages

3. different social structure

4. different beliefs

5. different standards of life

4. Summarise the text in 130-150 words. In your summary try to use the following words and phrases.

* Appendix 2 p. 148

miscommunication, sample the conversation correctly, cultural differences, mistranslations, different meanings, religion, judgments, ‘false consensus’, phenomenon

5. Discuss in small groups the current conflicts (worldwide, nation-wide or local) caused by the cultural distance.

* Appendix 3 p. 153