Describe the five theories of conflict

- The Human Needs Theory
According to this theory, all human beings have basic needs which they seek to fulfill, and that the denial and frustration of these needs by other groups or individuals could affect them immediately or later, thereby leading to conflict.

- The Structural Theory
The main argument of the structural theory is that conflict is built into the particular ways societies are structured and organized. The theory looks at social problems like political and economic exclusion, injustice, poverty, disease, exploitation, inequity, etc. as sources of conflict. Structuralists maintain that conflicts occur because of the exploitative and unjust nature of human societies, domination of one class by another, etc.

- Biological Theories
This theory has the view that humankind is evil by nature. The thinking is that since our ancestors were instinctively violent beings, and since we evolved from them, we too must bear destructive impulses in our genetic makeup. In their assessment of human nature, classical theorists like Thomas Hobbes, St Augustine, Malthus, and Freud expressed the belief that human beings are driven by natural instinct to self-preservation.

- Physiological Theories
Theorists of this school share the biological and hormonal origins of aggression and conflict in individuals, but add by providing the conditions under which it happens. According to them, even though humans have the capability to be aggressive, this capability remains idle until stimulated by necessity or encouraged by success.

- Psycho-Cultural Conflict Theory
This theory emphasizes the role of culturally induced conflict; it shows how enemy images are created from deep-seated attitudes about human action that are learnt from early stages of growth in the explanation of conflict. It contends, therefore, that even though there are different forms of identities, the one that is based on people's ethnic origin is one of the most important ways of explaining violent conflict. Identity is thus seen to be the reason for social conflicts that take long to resolve. However, despite their belief that ethnicity is the biggest source of identity-based conflicts; those who hold this view agree that this does not mean the conflict is unavoidable whenever there are ethnic differences.

- Systemic Theory
Systemic theories provide a socio-structural explanation for the emergence of violent social conflicts. The position of this theory is that the reason(s) for any social conflict lie in the social context within which it occurs. This theory turns focus to social factors and the effects of large-scale (usually sudden) changes in social, political and economic processes that would usually guide against instability.

- Relational Theory
Relational theories attempt to provide explanations for violent conflicts between groups by exploring sociological, political, economic and historical relationships between such groups. Thus, the belief here is that cultural and value differences as well as group interests all influence relationships between individuals and groups in different ways. At the sociological level, differences between cultural values is a challenge to individual or group identity formation processes and create the tendency to see others as intruders who have to be prevented from encroaching upon established cultural boundaries.

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Titany answered the question on August 11, 2021 at 06:07