In recent years, researchers investigating conflict resolution processes have developed various problem-solving workshops. These workshops serve two functions: research of the participant-observer variety, allowing researchers to observe real-world conflict behavior; and service, providing insight and training to the conflict participants regarding peaceful resolution of their conflict. They are a form of experiment in international communication and rose from a belief that conventional methods of third-party intervention in international disputes were not very successful. This article analyzes the workshops developed by Burton, Doob, and Kelman, and suggests how we might progress from “pretheories” to theories of conflict and its resolution.
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