Silva Fennica : monographs : sma002.htm
Conflict cultures – Qualitative Comparative Analysis of environmental conflicts in forestry
Silva Fennica Monographs 2. 109 p.
Owing to the internationalisation of the forestry debate and forest policy, there is growing need to conduct comparative forest policy research at an international scale. This research compares environmental conflicts in forestry in seven cases during 1984–1995. The cases include Finland, France, Minnesota USA, Norway, Pacific Northwest USA, Sweden and West Germany. The research is based on the notion that each society has its own ‘cultural’ ways of producing and managing environmental conflicts in forestry, depending on the social, political, economic, and resource characteristics of the society. The purpose of the study is to describe these conflict cultures, to identify and analyse the societal aspects that impact them, and to discuss the implications of understanding conflicts as cultural phenomena. The research is based on focused interviews of multiple actors related to forest management and protection. For the data analysis, a ‘hermeneutic’ (interpretative and understanding) approach is introduced to Qualitative Comparative Analysis, the use of which has been dominated by causal applications. As a result of the analysis, models of conflict cultures and conflict management strategies are constructed. The model of conflict cultures indicates three basic dimensions of conflict culture, and defines how they are related to each other. These dimensions are mild vs. intense conflicts, separatist vs. co-operative relations between actors and stability vs. change in forest resource policy and use. The model of conflict management strategies indicates to what extent the different cases place emphasis on interactive vs. institutional conflict management, and the management of conflicting (sub)cultures within the society vs. the conflict culture of the society.
Keywords
environmental conflict, forestry, culture, Qualitative Comparative Analysis, QCA method, hermeneutic interpretation, Finland, France, Minnesota, Norway, Pacific Northwest USA, Sweden, West Germany
Addresses
Finnish Forest Association, Salomonkatu 17 B, FIN-00100 Helsinki, Finland. Fax +358 9 6850 8820, E-mail eeva.hellstrom@smy.fi
Received 30 October 2000 Accepted 17 April 2001
ISBN 951-40-1777-3
ISSN 1457-7356