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Ohtsubo, Yohsuke; Himichi, Toshiyuki; Inamasu, Kazunori; Kohama, Shoko; Mifune, Nobuhiro; Tago, Atsushi
doi: 10.1002/ejsp.3028pmid: N/A
A set of four vignette studies (total N = 1600) examined whether voluntariness, novelty, vulnerability and irrevocability of reconciliation events serve as conciliatory signals that communicate serious intentions for improved relations. Studies 1 and 2 manipulated the presence of the four factors in the reconciliation event initiated by the political leader of a country in a relatively disadvantageous (Study 1) or advantageous (Study 2) position. Studies 1 and 2 revealed that the presence of substantial concession (‘public announcement of abandonment of disputed region’ in Study 1 and ‘demolition of a military facility in the disputed region’ in Study 2) enhanced signal effectiveness (participants perceived these concessions reflecting the political leader's serious conciliatory intention). Follow‐up studies (Studies 3A and 3B), which manipulated the level of concession (high vs. intermediate vs. low), confirmed the main result: High and intermediate levels of concession enhanced signal effectiveness compared to low concession.
Karić, Tijana; Van Assche, Jasper; Swart, Hermann
doi: 10.1002/ejsp.3066pmid: N/A
This Special Issue editorial explores perspectives on intergroup reconciliation and its underlying processes in post‐conflict societies, emphasizing the importance of four key themes: 1) victimhood, 2) acknowledgment, 3) forgiveness, and 4) intergroup contact. After presenting the state of the art in reconciliation research, we present the individual contributions in this Special Issue, and we link them to the four key themes. We end this editorial by setting out an agenda for future research, underscoring the timeliness and relevance of reconciliation efforts in today's world. By offering insights into evidence‐based interventions and practical strategies for promoting positive intergroup relations, this Special Issue hopes to contribute to the broader discourse on peacebuilding and social cohesion in post‐conflict societies.
Andrighetto, Luca; Halabi, Samer; Kosic, Ankica; Petrović, Nebojša; Prelić, Nedim; Pecini, Chiara; Nadler, Arie
doi: 10.1002/ejsp.3050pmid: N/A
Reconciliation research revealed that the institutional acknowledgement of the group's sufferings does not always improve fractured intergroup relations. To get a better understanding of this issue, through a field experiment we explored whether its effectiveness could be dependent on the collective background against which it is provided. That is, we involved citizens (N = 975) from societies entrapped in recent or ongoing conflicts (i.e., Bosnia and Herzegovina, Serbia, Palestinian, Israel) and examined the effects of the institutional acknowledgement of a chosen trauma when its denial by the majority (vs. minority) of outgroup members was made salient. Results revealed that the salience of the acknowledgement was effective in increasing the trust towards outgroup representatives. Instead, such an acknowledgement was ineffective in improving people's willingness to reconcile and hope for change, which was mainly dependent on the levels of denial by outgroup members. However, for these latter variables, relevant differences emerged depending on the conflictual versus post‐conflictual context. Implications of our findings for intergroup reconciliation are discussed.
doi: 10.1002/ejsp.3033pmid: N/A
In 2016, the Colombian government signed a historic peace accord with the FARC‐EP after 50 years of armed conflict. Still, widespread obstacles to forgiveness and reconciliation remained. The current study explores the potential of reconciliation centres (RC) in Medellin to help counteract a return to violence. These seven RCs included three branches of programming about forgiveness and reconciliation to support community well‐being and social capital. A between‐group analysis, as part of a quasi‐experimental design, demonstrated no significant growth in participants’ understanding that restoration is different from reparation or awareness that reconciliation involves approaching the other to rebuild. There was enhanced acceptance that forgiveness is not forgetting and is a personal decision. While social capital increased, the perception that the community likes to help others and that community work benefits others decreased. The findings demonstrate the complicated relationships between reconciliation, community well‐being and social capital, especially for community‐level interventions in violent contexts.
Counihan, Dearbháile; Corbett, Bethany; Tomašić Humer, Jasmina; Tomovska Misoska, Ana; Dautel, Jocelyn B.; Taylor, Laura K.
doi: 10.1002/ejsp.3043pmid: N/A
The effects of political violence are felt across generations; for example, extent of parental competitive victimhood (feeling that one's ingroup was relatively more victimised during the conflict) predicts adolescent's intergroup discrimination. We extend that research to children, born a generation after the height of violence. Participants were 223 family dyads with children aged 7–11 (M = 9.05, SD = 1.30; 52.4% female): Croatia (n = 82) and Republic of North Macedonia (RNM: n = 141), equally split by group status (i.e., Croatia: Croats/Serbs; RNM: Macedonian/Albanian). Parents reported on competitive victimhood while children reported on intergroup contact intentions (e.g., shared education initiatives). Moderation analysis across sites found a significant status by competitive victimhood interaction; increased parental competitive victimhood was associated with decreased contact intentions among minority, but not majority, children. We review site‐specific findings in relation to their historical context, concluding with the implications for shared education, reconciliation and peacebuilding.
Rincón‐Unigarro, Camilo; Joel‐Bustos, Angie; Pérez‐Farfán, Katherine; Velosa‐Campos, Astrid; López‐López, Wilson
doi: 10.1002/ejsp.3042pmid: N/A
Transitional justice jurisdictions aim to promote reconciliation. Although previous research focuses on truth commissions, the reconciliatory role of redistributive justice is less clear. This article investigated the association of conditional cash transfers and victims’ reparation with demand for redistribution, belief in forgiveness, support for the peace process and community participation in Colombia. We analysed three nationally representative samples of the Latin American Public Opinion Project (LAPOP) surveys in 2011 (Study 1; n = 1503), 2016 (Study 2; n = 1563) and 2018 (Study 3; n = 1663). Consistently across studies, conditional cash transfers (and not victim reparation programs) predicted higher community participation, with little effect on other reconciliation indicators. Further, redistribution is indirectly associated with other reconciliation indicators through community participation, supporting the observation that transitional justice relates to reconciliation when it satisfies a need for agency and empowerment. We discuss how the null effects of the victim reparation program suggesting context‐specific constraints.
Ünver‐Aba, Halime; Çakal, Hüseyin
doi: 10.1002/ejsp.3044pmid: N/A
The present research focuses on the secondary transfer effect of contact, a relatively less researched dimension of intergroup contact, on reconciliation in the context of one of the most intractable and longest surviving interethnic conflicts in Europe, the Cyprus conflict. Currently, Cyprus is home to three groups with differential social, economic and political statuses: (1) disadvantaged low‐status Turkish immigrants, (2) simultaneously advantaged (relative to Turkish immigrants) and disadvantaged (relative to Greek Cypriots) Turkish Cypriots and (3) historically advantaged high‐status Greek Cypriots. Across two studies (Study 1 N = 270 and Study 2 N = 501), we test whether and how Turkish immigrants’ contact with Turkish Cypriots shapes Turkish immigrants' support for reconciliation and willingness to live with Greek Cypriots via attitude generalisation. We also investigate whether Turkish immigrants’ perceived ingroup reputation qualifies this process. Controlling for the effects of direct contact with Greek Cypriots, our results show that both quantity and quality of contact with proximal Turkish Cypriots were indirectly associated with greater support for reconciliation with them and more willingness to live with Greek Cypriots via positive attitudes towards the primary (Turkish Cypriots) and positive attitudes towards the secondary (Greek Cypriots), sequentially. Moreover, we found that the perceived higher ingroup reputation across the island positively moderated the indirect effects of primary group contact on support for reconciliation and willingness to live with Greek Cypriots. That is, more contact with the primary outgroup was positively linked to greater support for reconciliation with the distal secondary outgroup Greek Cypriots when perceptions of ingroup reputation were higher.
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