Police reform, gun violence, global warming... When did you last have a civil, informative, productive conversation with someone of differing opinions on any of these vital but polarizing topics?

In the current U.S. climate, such conversations range from difficult to impossible to regrettable. The eminent social psychologist, Peter Coleman (Director of The Difficult Conversations Lab at Columbia University) is deeply familiar with such conversations and with longstanding group conflicts among nations. Yet he remains optimistic enough to suggest a blueprint for reversing the toxic polarization currently afflicting the U.S. 

In Episode 9, “Embrace Complexity to Overcome Polarization,” we speak with Dr. Coleman about the methods and examples at the heart of his book, The Way Out, recently published by Columbia University Press. In his view, embracing complexity is a first essential step on the way toward real dialogue and away from weaponized debates.  

Dr. Coleman also describes examples suggesting seemingly intractable conflicts can improve over time. Costa Rica emerged from a bloody civil war with a broad consensus for change, resulting in the disbanding of the armed forces and mandatory peace instruction in the schools. Sitting in a deep red upstate New York territory, the town of Watertown rates as one of the least polarized in the country by several measures, including intermarriage between “reds” and “blues”.  

To learn more about the art of real dialogue and the science of reconciliation, tune into Episode 9, “Embrace Complexity to Overcome Polarization: Discussing a Way out with Dr Peter Coleman, of Columbia University.” 

Original Music by Ryan Adair Rooney

Our guest

Peter T. Coleman, Columbia University

@PeterTColeman

Additional Resources

The Way Out: How to Overcome Toxic Polarization (Columbia University Press)

Gottman Love Lab

Bridging Divides Initiative 

Costa Rica: Choosing a Path to Build and Sustain Peace.

Support for universal background checks on gun buyers is near 90%

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Our website: https://fluentknowledge.com/shows/the-purple-principle/the-way-out

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