Central to a transformational approach to conflict is the idea that conflicts must be viewed as embedded within broader relational patterns, and social and discursive structures-and must be addressed as such. This implies the need for systemic change at generative levels, in order to create genuine transformation at the level of particular conflicts. Central, also, to this book is the idea that the origins of transformation can be momentary, or situational, small-scale or micro-level, as well as bigger and more systemic or macro-level. Micro-level changes involve shifts and meaningful changes in communication and related patterns that are created in communication between people. Such transformative changes can radiate out into more systemic levels, and systemic transformative changes can radiate inwards to more micro- levels. This book engages this transformative framework. Within this framework, this book pulls together current work that epitomizes, and highlights, the contribution of communication scholarship, and communication centered approaches to conflict transformation, in local/community, regional, environmental and global conflicts in various parts of the world. The resulting volume presents an engaging mix of scholarly chapters, think pieces, and experiences from the field of practice. The book embraces a wide variety of theoretical and methodological approaches, as well as transformative techniques and processes, including: narrative, dialogic, critical, cultural, linguistic, conversation analytic, discourse analytic, and rhetorical. This book makes a valuable contribution to the ongoing dialogue across and between disciplines and people on how to transform conflicts creatively, sustainably, and ethically.

This inaugural volume in the Peter Lang Conflict and Peace series brings together works that richly depict the tensions between the promise and reality of applying communication principles and theories to conflict transformation and peacebuilding around the world and in the United States. Each chapter provides concrete examples of the doing of engaged scholarship in this context. Chapter contributors explain how their on-the-ground work has contributed to theorizing in communication and beyond as well as to conflict transformation and peacebuilding practice. Importantly, they also unearth the challenges in designing and implementing techniques and practices. As a collection, this edited volume underscores the communicative nature of conflict transformation and peacebuilding in particular, and engaged scholarship, in general. The collection also reveals tensions in doing engaged scholarship that are applicable to other contexts beyond conflict transformation and peacebuilding.

Patienthood and Communication is an engagingly personal narrative detailing the author's experience living with, and adapting to, a degenerative and incurable eye disease (MacTel). Beyond the personal, this poignant story more broadly illustrates the ways in which communication enables individuals to adjust to serious health threats. Author and subject Peter Kellett highlights his important interactions with health care providers, family members, friends, colleagues, students, and others that provide shape to his journey. Kellett displays a compelling capacity for self-reflection in his descriptions of the life changes his vision loss imposes upon him, among them changes to his identity, in relationships and life plans. Adaptation and flexibility reveal themselves as central tenets of his learning to become a self-empowered patient. Perhaps the most crucial element to his adjustment is, however, positive communication, which is depicted throughout the book as the driving force in Kellett's journey into patienthood.

Patienthood and Communication is an engagingly personal narrative detailing the author's experience living with, and adapting to, a degenerative and incurable eye disease (MacTel). Beyond the personal, this poignant story more broadly illustrates the ways in which communication enables individuals to adjust to serious health threats. Author and subject Peter Kellett highlights his important interactions with health care providers, family members, friends, colleagues, students, and others that provide shape to his journey. Kellett displays a compelling capacity for self-reflection in his descriptions of the life changes his vision loss imposes upon him, among them changes to his identity, in relationships and life plans. Adaptation and flexibility reveal themselves as central tenets of his learning to become a self-empowered patient. Perhaps the most crucial element to his adjustment is, however, positive communication, which is depicted throughout the book as the driving force in Kellett's journey into patienthood.

A transformational approach to conflict argues that conflicts must be viewed as embedded within broader relational patterns and social and discursive structures. Central to this book is the idea that the origins of transformation can be momentary, situational, and small-scale or large-scale and systemic. The momentary involves shifts and meaningful changes in communication and related patterns that are created in communication between people. Momentary transformative changes can radiate out into more systemic levels, and systemic transformative changes can radiate inward to more personal levels. This book engages this transformative framework by bringing together current scholarship that epitomizes and highlights the contribution of communication scholarship and communication-centered approaches to conflict transformation in personal, family, and working relationships and organizational contexts. The resulting volume presents an engaging mix of scholarly chapters, think pieces, and personal experiences from the field of practice and everyday life. The book embraces a wide variety of theoretical and methodological approaches, including narrative, critical, intersectional, rhetorical, and quantitative. It makes a valuable additive contribution to the ongoing dialogue across and between disciplines on how to transform conflicts creatively, sustainably, and ethically.

"Professor Kellett's text is unique among undergraduate texts in its use of narrative theory to understand conflicts and to develop more effective strategies in family and relational conflicts. The most impressive aspect of the text is the rich and compelling stories. Students and practitioners will be able to relate to the stories and learn important conflict analysis techniques and communication skills through them." -Angela Laird Brenton, University of Arkansas at Little Rock "The text is a wonderful study of the role of archetype in a conflict and the use of narrative. I am impressed with the notion of projection. In a self-focused society we don't often think that the problem may lie within ourselves. The book teaches the skill of self-reflection and helps readers to become more other-centered. I am pleased to read the case studies as they provide fine classroom tools; they are engaging and diverse. Kellett has done much to incorporate narrative into the study of conflict and communication. Conflict Dialogue is a welcome addition to the body of conflict literature and centers communication within that body of literature." -Christopher Lynch, Kean University Conflicts are more effectively managed if people understand the layers meaning in their conflicts and collaborate based on those meanings. In this book, author Peter M. Kellett analyzes and interprets real-life conflict stories as a way to create opportunities for more productive ways to navigate and resolve conflict. Key Features: Examines real, lived experiences of conflict: Real-life conflict stories, from students themselves, illustrate how people actually manage conflict and allow readers to identify with experiences from their own lives. These stories represent the different participants in the conflict allowing readers to compare and contrast the meaning of the conflict from varied perspectives. Addresses diversity in conflicts: Because conflicts are mediated by both personal and cultural issues of identity, case study narratives of diverse cultural relationships and conflicts are included throughout. Blends theoretical depth with practical technique: This book uses an additive approach that builds theoretically grounded technique through four sections. Throughout each chapter, readers get both a sense of the depth and complexity of conflicts and an understanding how dialogic negotiation can be used to create more productive relationships. Intended Audience: This is an ideal textbook for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses such as Interpersonal Conflict, Conflict Analysis/Management, Dispute Resolution, and Negotiation in the fields of Communication, Sociology, Psychology, Human Resources, and Business & Management. It is also an excellent resource for scholars, researchers, and practitioners in the areas of conflict and dispute resolution.

Peter Kellett and Diana Dalton set out in this text to address the question: How do people manage conflict effectively? This is a simple question with an elusive and complex answer. To determine how to manage conflict one must first understand the meaning of conflict for those engaged in it. The authors do this by presenting a step-by-step guide to describing, interpreting, understanding and managing conflict. Using real life narratives, they explain how and why conflict occurs and strategies that one can deploy to manage the conflict. These interpretive and dialogic skills are illustrated clearly through the pairing of personal narratives with relevant discussion questions and challenging exercises. The first part of the book aims to equip readers with the ability to collect, analyze, and learn from conflicts from the perspective of developing more dialogic relationships. The second part enables the reader to apply this interpretive process to several communication contexts. With their thorough coverage of conflict management issues and their engaging writing style, Peter Kellett and Diana Dalton compel readers to examine their own conflicts for opportunities to learn, grow, communicate and change.

"Professor Kellett's text is unique among undergraduate texts in its use of narrative theory to understand conflicts and to develop more effective strategies in family and relational conflicts. The most impressive aspect of the text is the rich and compelling stories. Students and practitioners will be able to relate to the stories and learn important conflict analysis techniques and communication skills through them." -Angela Laird Brenton, University of Arkansas at Little Rock "The text is a wonderful study of the role of archetype in a conflict and the use of narrative. I am impressed with the notion of projection. In a self-focused society we don't often think that the problem may lie within ourselves. The book teaches the skill of self-reflection and helps readers to become more other-centered. I am pleased to read the case studies as they provide fine classroom tools; they are engaging and diverse. Kellett has done much to incorporate narrative into the study of conflict and communication. Conflict Dialogue is a welcome addition to the body of conflict literature and centers communication within that body of literature." -Christopher Lynch, Kean University Conflicts are more effectively managed if people understand the layers meaning in their conflicts and collaborate based on those meanings. In this book, author Peter M. Kellett analyzes and interprets real-life conflict stories as a way to create opportunities for more productive ways to navigate and resolve conflict. Key Features: Examines real, lived experiences of conflict: Real-life conflict stories, from students themselves, illustrate how people actually manage conflict and allow readers to identify with experiences from their own lives. These stories represent the different participants in the conflict allowing readers to compare and contrast the meaning of the conflict from varied perspectives. Addresses diversity in conflicts: Because conflicts are mediated by both personal and cultural issues of identity, case study narratives of diverse cultural relationships and conflicts are included throughout. Blends theoretical depth with practical technique: This book uses an additive approach that builds theoretically grounded technique through four sections. Throughout each chapter, readers get both a sense of the depth and complexity of conflicts and an understanding how dialogic negotiation can be used to create more productive relationships. Intended Audience: This is an ideal textbook for advanced undergraduate and graduate courses such as Interpersonal Conflict, Conflict Analysis/Management, Dispute Resolution, and Negotiation in the fields of Communication, Sociology, Psychology, Human Resources, and Business & Management. It is also an excellent resource for scholars, researchers, and practitioners in the areas of conflict and dispute resolution.

Peter Kellett and Diana Dalton set out in this text to address the question: How do people manage conflict effectively? This is a simple question with an elusive and complex answer. To determine how to manage conflict one must first understand the meaning of conflict for those engaged in it. The authors do this by presenting a step-by-step guide to describing, interpreting, understanding and managing conflict. Using real life narratives, they explain how and why conflict occurs and strategies that one can deploy to manage the conflict. These interpretive and dialogic skills are illustrated clearly through the pairing of personal narratives with relevant discussion questions and challenging exercises. The first part of the book aims to equip readers with the ability to collect, analyze, and learn from conflicts from the perspective of developing more dialogic relationships. The second part enables the reader to apply this interpretive process to several communication contexts. With their thorough coverage of conflict management issues and their engaging writing style, Peter Kellett and Diana Dalton compel readers to examine their own conflicts for opportunities to learn, grow, communicate and change.

A transformational approach to conflict argues that conflicts must be viewed as embedded within broader relational patterns and social and discursive structures. Central to this book is the idea that the origins of transformation can be momentary, situational, and small-scale or large-scale and systemic. The momentary involves shifts and meaningful changes in communication and related patterns that are created in communication between people. Momentary transformative changes can radiate out into more systemic levels, and systemic transformative changes can radiate inward to more personal levels. This book engages this transformative framework by bringing together current scholarship that epitomizes and highlights the contribution of communication scholarship and communication-centered approaches to conflict transformation in personal, family, and working relationships and organizational contexts. The resulting volume presents an engaging mix of scholarly chapters, think pieces, and personal experiences from the field of practice and everyday life. The book embraces a wide variety of theoretical and methodological approaches, including narrative, critical, intersectional, rhetorical, and quantitative. It makes a valuable additive contribution to the ongoing dialogue across and between disciplines on how to transform conflicts creatively, sustainably, and ethically.