Research at PFR!

Since December, PFR is hosting Masahiro Minami, a Japanese Ph.D. candidate in counseling psychology from the University of British Columbia, Canada. Masahiro came to Rwanda to carry out a research, investigating possible effectiveness of a non-conventional approach to reconciliation, based on Japanese Morita Therapy. Traditionally, almost all psychological interventions are based on talking sessions in which problems are discussed. Conflicts are resolved by a trained mediator who leads discussions and mediate between two parties. The same applies to the current process of psychological reconciliation. An offender usually asks for forgiveness, a victim answers, and it is left up to whether the victim accepts or declines. The process takes place on a entirely verbal domain. Does this help make a real change within a person? Does it help the victim heal from trauma and the offender from guilt?

Masahiro, as a Registered Clinical Counselor in British Columbia, Canada, has a lot of experience delivering verbal mediation, and worked as a counselor/mediator for years. He is also trained and certified as an expert in Morita therapy by the Japanese Society for Morita Therapy. This organization promotes the therapy first developed in 1919 by the late Dr. Shoma Morita, a Japanese psychiatrist who explored the possibility of healing through “engagement in purposeful action”. To put it simply, it asserts that a change is brought about, not by talking, but by doing. Traditional Morita therapy has features similar to those of Zen, but has been applied exclusively outside of this context and frame of reference. It promotes an “obedience to nature” and what is natural. For example, Morita therapist considers that our feelings, being it pleasant (e.g., happiness) or unpleasant (e.g., sadness) as natural consequence of event/circumstance/situation. Feelings, as natural human capacity, we have no influence over its control, but we can observe and take them as they are. However, action is possible in spite of the feelings, and through this, we can incorporate our feeling-world into our life without interfering our daily activities. Morita therapists believe that the solution to a problem is not found in words and logical and rational discussions of a conflict, but in action, engagements in working and doing something together. In a case of a conflict between a teenage daughter and her mother, rather than discussing for hours whether it is true or not whether she has cleaned her room, they can clean the room together under the observation of a therapist in lieu of the discussion. Masahiro feels that this approach has been far more productive and also effective in conflict mediation according to his clinical experience.

Masahiro aims to try and apply the same Morita therapy principle in challenging field of reconciliation. He considers that the true reconciliation is not achieved by only a confession of guilt and a forgiving answer (in the best-case scenario, while in the worst, conversations and the process just get stuck with differing positions). Masahiro sees that under the verbal and forgiveness-seeking based approach, the offender, who has already taken so much from his victim, is asking further for yet another psychological resource from the victim. Masahiro aims to observe possible benefits of practical forgiveness-seeking. Under this approach, victims receive. Victims receive from the offenders through working together for the victims, sharing daily works of the victims, an approach identical to what PFR offers at 6 of their reconciliation villages. Through this join-labour for the victims, victims and offenders might be able to rediscover the reciprocal exchange of humanity and be closer and do something together, which is to live together again.

Is it possible to transform a relationship by an inter-action? According to the empirical studies conducted in the area of contact theory, the answer is yes. Meta analyses of the studies support that a prolonged contacts, meeting certain “contact conditions” are most likely to lead to positive attitude change towards each other. Not only the time spent together is beneficial for the victims, but also is for the offenders in a different light: by working in a concrete way to help the victim, offenders are given opportunities to atones for their deeds and to give concrete evidence of his good will. Action-based practical reconciliation approach never forces the victim into an acceptance or even acknowledgment of offender remorse and guilt before the services and atonements being done. It also promotes cooperation in a clearly delimited context with engagements in works of daily living (which has to be done anyway and therefore is not an activity foreign to the parties and existing only for the purpose of reconciliation). It leaves control to the survivor who chooses when, what and how to accept the offenders offer. Masahiro considers that the role of a mediator is therefore that of a witness who coordinates and facilitates the encounter without giving any answer or steering the direction and media (verbal or non-verbal) of the encounter.

Although this practical approach to reconciliation has been the one adopted by PFR throughout the past years to achieve unity and reconciliation, there has not been any actual quantitative or qualitative research conducted about it and on how much this approach brings about healing and positive changes in attitudes within the communities. If the results of Masahiro's research are positive, they will provide strong empirical as well as theoretical backbone to the works PFR has already been doing. It will offer scientific support to our work and give us further affirmation and determination to carry on with our work. It will also provide us with empirical evidence with which to seek for further support. 

We will keep you informed of his research progress and the results!

Masahiro (in the middle) with the PFR team!

 

Recently, Masahiro has founded, together with Bishop John Rucyahan and Pastor Deo Gashagaza, and been appointed as the director of PFR-Morita Centre for Peace and Reconciliation Research. 

For more information of his research and the research centre, and to discover how you could help, visit www.pfrwanda.org!