If the world order is to move away from its present chaotic and violent condition, building cultures of peace warrants the highest priority. This is a difficult task, and establishing new machinery for resolving conflict is not easy, yet evidence suggests that some of our contemporary societies are developing relatively peaceful cultures. Certainly we can assess the extent to which different peoples have been able to employ nonviolent means to resolve conflict within themselves and with others.
By assessing the relative peacefulness of different cultures, we can set standards for what is possible, detect trouble spots, possibly encourage some healthy competition, and have a way of evaluating the effects of social movements and government policies. It may also provide a background for the assessment of peace operations that aim at transforming a society from a culture of war to one that deals with its problems with nonviolent means (Schumacher 2007). However, assessing the peacefulness of cultures requires us to say what we mean by both peacefulness and culture, and both concepts are more complex than one might imagine.
This is a preview of subscription content, log in via an institution to check access.
Access this chapter
Tax calculation will be finalised at checkout
Purchases are for personal use only
Preview
Unable to display preview. Download preview PDF.
References
Anderson, R. (2004) A definition of peace. Peace and Conflict, 10, 101–116
Bar-Tal, D., Halperin, E., and de Rivera, J. (2007). Collective emotions in conflict situations: Societal implications. Journal of Social Issues, 63, 441–460
Basabe, N., and Valencia, J. (2007). Culture of peace: Sociostructural dimensions, cultural values, and emotional climate. Journal of Social Issues, 63, 405–420
de Rivera, J. H. (2004a). Assessing the basis for a culture of peace in contemporary societies. Journal of Peace Research, 41, 531–548
de Rivera, J. H. (2004b). Norms for nonviolence. Poster presentation at the meeting of the American Psychological Association, Honolulu, HI
de Rivera, J., Kurrien, R., and Olsen, N. (2007). The emotional climate of nations and their culture of peace. Journal of Social Issues, 63, 255
de Rivera, J. and Páez, D. (2007). Emotional climate, human security, and cultures of peace. Journal of Social Issues, 63, 233–253
Diener, E., and Tov, W. (2007). Subjective well-being and peace. Journal of Social Issues, 63, 421–440
Fogarty, B. F. (2000). War, peace, and the social order. Boulder, CO: Westview Press
Galtung, J. (1971). A structural theory of imperialism. Journal of Peace Research, 8(2), 81–117
Gottlieb, G. (1993). Nation against state: A new approach to ethnic conflicts and the decline of sovereignty. New York: Council on Foreign Relations
Hofstede, G. (2001). Culture's consequences (2nd edn). Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage
Inglehart, R., Basañez, M., DÃez-Medrano, J., Halman, L., and Luijkx, R. (2004). Human beliefs and values. Mexico: S.XXI
Mahoney, C. O., and Pinedo, T. M. (2007). Human security in communities in Costa Rica and the Unites States. Journal of Social Issues, 63, 353–368
Mayton II, D. M., Susnjic, S., Palmer, B. J., Peters, D. J., Gierth, R., and Caswell, R. N. (2002). The measurement of nonviolence: A review. Peace and Conflict, 8, 343–354
Milani, F. M. & Branco, A. U. (2004). Assessing Brazil's culture of peace. Peace and Conflict, 10, 161–174
Milner, H. (2001). Civic literacy: How informed citizens make democracy work. Hanover NH: University Press of New England
Morales, J. F., and Leal, J. A. (2004). Indicators of a culture of peace in Spain. Peace and Conflict, 10, 147
Richardson, L. F. (1960). The statistics of deadly quarrels. Pittsburgh: Boxwood Press
Schumacher, J. (2007). What to measure in peace operations. The Pearson Papers, 10(1), 45–59
Schwartz, S. H. (1994). Beyond individualism/collectivism: New cultural dimensions of values. In: U. Kim, H. C. Triandis, C. Kagitcibasi, S. Choi, and G. Yoon (eds). Individualism and collectivism: Theory, method and applications (pp. 85–119). Thousands Oaks, CA: Sage
Editor information
Editors and Affiliations
Rights and permissions
Copyright information
© 2009 Springer Science+Business Media, LLC
About this chapter
Cite this chapter
Rivera, J.d. (2009). Assessing the Peacefulness of Cultures. In: de Rivera, J. (eds) Handbook on Building Cultures of Peace. Peace Psychology Book Series. Springer, New York, NY. https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-09575-2_7
Download citation
DOI: https://doi.org/10.1007/978-0-387-09575-2_7
Publisher Name: Springer, New York, NY
Print ISBN: 978-0-387-09574-5
Online ISBN: 978-0-387-09575-2
eBook Packages: Behavioral ScienceBehavioral Science and Psychology (R0)