Beyond causing dehumanization and delegitimization, stereotypes also lead to misunderstandings, when people assume they know what another person or group thinks without listening to them. Cultural differences are another serious source of misunderstandings. People have very different ways of seeing and interpreting the world, depending on their culture. What makes perfect sense to one person may seem crazy, stupid, or downright evil to another — just because of different cultural norms and assumptions. These misunderstandings commonly initiate and escalate conflicts, unless people take the time and make the effort to become what Michelle LeBaron calls "culturally fluent" — able to see and understand the assumptions of one's own culture, and understand how they differ from and perhaps complement the assumptions and practices of other cultures.

We know that culture infuses all aspects of all conflicts, even when the cultures of the parties are the same. Culture teaches us how to interpret events and how to respond to them. It focuses our communication in particular ways, and limits acceptable responses. The following articles discuss the role of culture in conflict, and what it means to be "culturally fluent."

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• Culture and Conflict This introductory article on the intersection between culture and conflict explains the impact of one on the other further.
• Cultural and Worldview Frames   People from different cultures often have such radically different worldviews that what seems like common sense to one side, is anything but sensible to the other.
• Culture-Based Negotiation Styles In Asian, Canadian, and U.S. cultures, touching outside of intimate situations is discouraged. But, Mediterranean, Arab, and Latin American cultures allow more touching. Cultural differences like this can cause problems in cross-cultural negotiations. Such differences are explored in this essay.
• Rituals and Conflict Transformation This article describes the importance of rituals in conflict resolution — both in traditional societies and also in modern societies, such as that of the U.S. Rituals are a way of expressing and dealing with strong emotions and values; they provide security and a familiar, comfortable way of dealing with difficult conflicts or disputes.
• Cross-Cultural Communication Even with all the good will in the world, miscommunication is likely to happen, especially when there are significant cultural differences between communicators. Miscommunication may lead to conflict, or aggravate conflict that already exists.
• Communication Tools for Understanding Cultural Differences Edward T. Hall writes that for us to understand each other may mean, "reorganizing [our] thinking...and few people are willing to risk such a radical move." This essay offers strategies for improving cross-cultural communication.
• Mediation and Multiculturalism In this essay, the author discusses his experiences with multicultural mediation and suggests ways that mediators can avoid misunderstandings.

Book Summaries:

• Bridges Not Walls
  John Stewart, ed.
  Communication is both a relational and an individual activity, which has a dramatic effect on the nature of conflict. Ways to avoid potentially devastating miscommunications and to engage in effective communication are discussed.
• Bridging Cultural Conflicts: A New Approach for a Changing World
  Michelle LeBaron
  Michelle LeBaron gives disputants and third parties detailed guidance about the intersection between culture and conflict, and offers ways to better understand and negotiate cultural differences to enable constructive conflict resolution.
• Negotiating Across Cultures: Communication Obstacles in International Diplomacy
  Raymond Cohen
  Culture has a significant effect on diplomatic negotiations, shaping their content, process, and style. Cohen examines the effect of cultural differences in cross-cultural negotiations, pointing out the importance of understanding and appreciating these differences.
• Rethinking the Culture-Negotiation Link in NegotiationTheory and Practice
  Robert Janosik
  The relationship between culture and negotiation is the focus of much contemporary research. Janosik argues that culture is understood differently by different authors, consequently affecting the way this link is thought about. He identifies four distinct approaches to understanding the impact of culture on negotiation.
• The Mindsets Factor in Ethnic Conflict: A Cross-Cultural Agenda
  Glen Fisher
  Often conflict is approached with wildly different and sometimes incongruent mindsets. In order to overcome these differences it is necessary to first understand the mindset of other parties as best as one can, and then tailor strategy to this understanding. This book discusses this process.
• Conflict Management: A Communication Skills Approach
  Deborah Borisoff and David Victor
  Regardless of its content, communication can exacerbate conflict. Ways in which communication styles contribute to the escalation or resolution of conflict are discussed.
• Conflict: Resolution and Provention
  John Burton
  Burton invented the term “provention” to avoid the negative connotations of containment associated with the term, “prevention”. Conflict: Resolution and Provention describes how conflict can be provented and resolved using a problem-solving approach.
• New Directions in Mediation: Communication Research and Perspectives
  Joseph Folger and Tricia Jones, eds
  For mediation to be successful, communication between the parties must be successful. This book provides an overview of contemporary research on the theory and practice of communication in conflict.

Other Resources of Interest:

• Arnett, Ronald and Pat Arneson, Dialogic Civility in a Cynical Age. Albany: SUNY Press, 1999.
  Author's Description
• Bohm, James. "Public Reason and Cultural Pluralism: Political Liberalism and the Problem of Moral Conflict." pp. 253-279 In Political Theory. 23:2, 1995.
  Author's Description
• Goi, Simona. "Agonism, Deliberation, and the Politics of Abortion." In Polity. 37:1, 2005.
  Publisher's Description
• Simpson, Barbara, Bob Large, and Matthew O'Brien. "Bridging Difference Through Dialogue: A Constructivist Perspective." In Journal of Constructivist Psychology, 17:45-59, 2004.
  Publisher's Description
• Streich, Gregory. "Constructing Multiracial Democracy: To Deliberate or Not to Deliberate." In Constellations, (9:1, 2002).
  Consortium Article Abstract
• Wade, Susan Omalley. "Using Intentional, Values-Based Dialogue to Engage Complex Public Policy Conflicts." In Conflict Resolution Quarterly. 21:3, 2005.
  Author's Description
• Littlejohn, Stephen. "The Transcendent Communication Project: Searching for a Praxis of Dialogue." In Conflict Resolution Quarterly, (21:3, 2004).
  Consortium Article Abstract
• Gavriel Salomon. 2004. Does Peace Education Make a Difference in the Context of an Intractable Conflict? Peace and Conflict: Journal of Peace Psychology. Vol. 10, No. 3, 257-274.
  Author's Description
• Gephart, R.P., Steier, L. & Lawrence, T. (1990)." Cultural rationalities in crisis sensemaking: A study of a public inquiry into a major industrial accident." In Industrial Crisis Quarterly, 4, 27-48.
  Author's Description
• Culture based negotiation style
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• Ritual conflict transformation
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• Culture communication
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