Coordinating Meaning and Joint Identity
This chapter is based on an ongoing research of intercultural relationships in a mixed Jewish-Arab town in Israel. The goal of the project is to establish patterns of constructive communication between the two groups, using the methods and models of Coordinated Management of Meaning (CMM) practical theory (Pearce, 1997) to promote the viability and sustainability of the community. Our case-study depicts Jews and Arabs in the human organization called the town of Ramla, where two cultural communities are divided along several reinforcing rifts including ethnic, religious, lingual and cultural (Horowitz & Lissak, 1989). These dissimilar backgrounds generate psychological, emotional and communicational difficulties, which encumber coexistence and impairs prosperity for the town's 62,000 residents. The keys to grapple with such challenges are prudent and inspiring leadership and effective cross-cultural collaboration. These two goals—finding adept leaders and establishing cross-cultural cooperation--are primary in the strategic intervention in the divided society of Ramla.