Psychological reconciliation: National and international perspectives

In Australia and in countries around the world, histories of oppression and armed conflict have shattered social trust, inflicted profound physical an d psychological damage, and created deeply divided societies. To break cycl es of violence and build peace, it is vital to work on reconciliation, a mu ltidisciplinary task that has important psychological dimensions. This pape r develops a tripartite framework for conceptualising reconciliation as a p rocess of systems change that involves coming to terms with the past, build ing peace and nonviolent conflict resolution, and establishing social justi ce. Work on reconciliation needs to be multicultural, since reconciliation may have different meanings and may involve different processes in differen t cultural contexts. To impose western views and methods may inflict damage and continue the history of oppression. By working in partnership with loc al communities, psychologists may help to create culturally relevant approa ches that integrate local resources with western views and tools. Using exa mples from an international symposium conducted at the University of Melbou rne, the paper examines how psychological organisations may contribute to m ulticultural approaches to reconciliation. Citing examples from various sub -areas of psychology, it identifies specific, psychologically relevant task s on which psychologists may contribute to reconciliation through research, education, training, and practice.