The first theme is that alternatives to violence do exist . Human nature and human institutions are flexible, and levels of violence vary from one cultural setting to the next, with some cultures expressing extremely lox levels of violence. The contributions in this volume provide various examples of conflict-resolution processes that lead away from violence. A second theme, reflected in the title and throughout the book, is that culture is critical in shaping the manner in which people perceive, evaluate, and choose options for dealing with conflict . Conflict resolution, as a cultural phenomenon, is highly connected with and dependent on a society's relevant norms, practises, and institutions.
Different cultures develop their own formal and informal ways of dealing with conflicts.
This fact becomes even more important when people from different ethnic, religious, racial, and social backgrounds attempt to solve their conflicts. As a third theme , we suggest that by studying conflict resolution from different cultural settings, it will be possible to enhance the repertoire of alternatives to violence and to discover general conflict-resolution strategies . The contributions in this volume contain a wealth of ideas for dealing with conflict, and when viewed as a collection, they also suggest certain conflict-resolution principles that may be applied over a variety of settings. Virtually every chapter in this volume touches upon the diversity and the importance of cultural factors on conflict-resolution practises. Since learning and encultural processes are of critical importance in shaping people's attitudes towards conflict resolution, particular attention also is given to the socialization process.