Social Theories

Peter Evanz Newton

En su capacidad como traductor e intérprete internacional, Peter C. Newton-Evans se especializa en temas ambientales, energéticos y de desarrollo socioeconómico. Además, se desempeña conferencista y facilitador de talleres en diversas áreas del desarrollo humano, institucional y comunitario. El principal enfoque de esta labor es el fomento de una Cultura de Paz, tema que viene trabajando durante varias décadas en calidad de investigador y activista. Su inspiración para esta actividad es su participación en la Comunidad Mundial Bahá’í, que tiene más de siglo y medio de servicio a la causa de la unidad en diversidad y la paz.

Social Theory

Introduction

The last section reviewed some of the mental models that seek to define human beings in an ontological sense as an individual or group of individuals. Other mental models refer to the nature of social order as such. At first sight, it might seem that this nature should reflect that of man as an individual. However, deeper consideration reveals that society is more than the sum of its individual members and therefore requires separate treatment. Read....

The 'Law of the Jungle

Resumen: En este capítulo se cuestiona la concepción tradicional de la 'Ley de la Selva' y el dicho de que "el hombre es lobo del hombre", a la luz de hallazgos recientes por parte de la ecología o estudio de ecosistemas. Esto es seguido por un análisis de las implicaciones sociales que han tenido dichas nociones antiguas y las conclusiones que pueden aportar los nuevos conocimientos para el fomento de una cultura de paz.
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What was the role of ecology as a science in redefining the meaning of the “Law of the Jungle?”

What is the difference between the old and the new definitions of the “Law of the Jungle?”

Is Competition Necessary & Inevitable?

In the Western world, a predominant cultural trait is competition, defined as a relationship of opposition or rivalry in which two or more individuals or groups attempt to achieve the same goal in such a way that if one of them wins, the others necessarily lose. This model has become materialized in most modern institutions and social practices, including economics, politics, judicial systems, education, sports, and even the arts, religion and daily social relations. Read...(English) Leer más...(Spanish)

What are the arguments of those who believe that competition is necessary & inevitable? How does Peter Newton refute each one of them?

Argument

Counter-Argument

Concepts of Power and Domination

The mental model of competition produces what Michael Karlberg[1] describes so well as an “adversarial culture” or “culture of contest”. In this culture, the prevailing worldview is one of competition, in which individuals and institutions pursue their own interests, there are always winners and losers, and the strongest, most powerful or most influential person, institution or party "wins". Since the outcomes of such a system are rarely equitable, in order to address the injustices that inevitably arise, the culture of adversarialism is surrounded by a culture of protest. The objected injustice then becomes the center of another conflict, which in turn leads to additional protests, and so on.
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According to Michal Karlberg, what is power? What are his two main categories of power? Which category of power does not meet the needs of humanity, and why? Which category power does humanity still need to develop, and why?

Unity vs Identity?

One of the most basic of all human needs is to have a positive identity. In our eagerness to achieve this, we sometimes use various strategies to ‘enhance' our self-image without needing to change, by convincing ourselves that we are all right the way we are. One way to do this is to identify with a group to which we attribute favorable characteristics, be it our family, community, race, ethnic group, gender, religion, organization, etc. In this case, I know I am a ‘good’ person because I am part of a group that has a positive identity which, by association, also belongs to me.
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Is War Inevitable?

When discussing the possibility of a peaceful world, one frequently hears the argument that peace is impossible because “there have always been wars and there always will be.” This argument is supported by educational texts that present history as a continual series of wars, conflicts, revolutions, and struggles, which students memorize along with the details of place, date and important figures. It is as though war were the ‘natural’ state of humanity, and peace a mere anomaly that only occurs once in a while. In reality, however, it is wars have been limited events and have covered a minimum of the total history of each people. To think otherwise is to ignore their years, decades and even centuries of peace, prosperity, progress, and happiness.
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Is war inevitable? What are some of the reasons that people believe it is? How are these reasons contradicted? What is proposed as a more appropriate meaning of war and peace?

Argument

Counter-argument

Función Social de la Ciencia

Resumen: La ciencia no se limita a buscar la verdad, sino que es creadora de realidades. En el presente artículo se analiza la manera como la ciencia forma y justifica las actitudes sociales, a fin de legitimar y perpetuar el estatus quo. Se plantea la necesidad de un cambio de paradigma en las ciencias sociales para el logro de una Cultura de Paz y el rescate del rol del científico social y humano como activista o agente de cambio sociocultural.

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