Semester
Spring
Date of Graduation
2019
Document Type
Thesis
Degree Type
MA
College
Eberly College of Arts and Sciences
Department
Sociology and Anthropology
Committee Chair
Jesse Wozniak
Committee Co-Chair
Joshua Woods
Committee Member
Joshua Woods
Committee Member
James Nolan
Abstract
The objective of this research is to explore the possibilities for improving governmental relations (local, national, and international) using microcosms of cross-cultural dialogues facilitated with Socratic Inquiry methodology and their potential to project situational similarities into more formal political conversation. Using twenty-five recorded dialogues from The Pennsylvania State University’s Center for Public Diplomacy (World in Conversation), I have broadly observed the role of Socratic Inquiry facilitation in cross-cultural dialogues whose content varies across a span of contentious social topics. By generally accounting for a range of relevant social factors such as gender, body language, conversational tools, and proxies for empathy, I am able to cultivate a broad picture of how people with differing cultural backgrounds connect with and find empathy for one another in settings of contentious social conversation with the help of facilitators trained in Socratic Inquiry methodology. I posit that these findings can be translated into higher-level political settings and serve as a flexible canvas for which fairer and more inclusive agreements can be reached.
Recommended Citation
Zimmerman, Mikaela G., "Bridging the Gap: Utilizing Socratic Inquiry Facilitation in Cross-Cultural Communication and Conflict Exploration" (2019). Graduate Theses, Dissertations, and Problem Reports. 3908.
https://researchrepository.wvu.edu/etd/3908
Updated/Revised form