This week’s peacebuilding tip is about how to take the other’s position in conflict. This strategy is a cognitive exercise when you are trying to make peace with someone who has a different perspective than you. First, be very clear on what you are trying to convey or how you are positioning yourself. After understanding yourself,...
Summary of: Guthridge, M., & Giummarra, M. J. (2021). The taxonomy of empathy: A meta-definition and the nine dimensions of the empathic system. Journal of Humanistic Psychology. https://doi.org/10.1177/00221678211018015 Background & Theory There is a lot of confusion surrounding the word empathy. The diverse many meanings of the word results in descriptions of a highly heterogeneous...
This week’s peacebuilding tip is about how to practice inclusivity in the workplace. It is important to be inclusive when creating and maintaining peace. Inclusivity is purely making sure everybody feels that they have input in the decision-making of the company, especially the decisions that will affect them. You can be inclusive in many different...
This week’s peacebuilding tip is about how to recognize and appreciate the people around you regularly. The best place to begin building trust with someone is by recognizing them and appreciating their impact on our lives. This makes people feel valued which is super important. It can be as simple as saying “Hey, I...
Summary Of: Wieck, C., Kunzmann, U., & Scheibe, S. (2021). Empathy at work: The role of age and emotional job demands. Psychology and Aging, 36(1), 36–48. https://doi.org/10.1037/pag0000469 Background & Theory Empathy requires both cognitive facets (the ability to perceive others’ emotions accurately) and affective facets (the capacity to share others’ emotions and to feel sympathy)....
This week’s peacebuilding tip is how to set clear expectations in the workplace. Many conflicts in the workplace are derived from a lack of communication or even a misunderstanding. Sometimes, a solution can be as easy as making it clear what is expected from an employee. Expectations can sometimes be implied, but both parties may...
Summary of: Nunney, S. J., & Manstead, A. S. R. (2021). Improving the effectiveness of intergroup apologies: The role of apology content and moral emotions. Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology. Advance online publication. http://dx.doi.org/10.1037/pac0000571 Background & Theory: Past research has indicated that while apologies can be useful for interpersonal forgiveness, people are more...
This week’s conflict resolution tip is about getting out of autopilot when in conflict. When we get into conflict, we usually feel our needs are threatened in some way. In reaction to this perceived threat, our sympathetic nervous system activates, and we go into fight or flight mode. This makes us defensive and offensive towards...
If you find yourself in a situation where you’ve wronged someone in some way, you likely have had the feeling that you need to apologize to them. But apologizing is often much easier said than done. When we find ourselves in these situations, we often wonder how to give a sincere apology that repairs some,...
How can one best give an honest apology? It is no surprise that apology is a very complex subject. The common situations that require one to give an honest apology are often emotionally overheated and almost always involve some sort of conflict. Some people are inclined to avoid admittance of wrongdoing at all costs while...
