Twentieth International Conference on Diversity in Organizations, Communities & Nations

Abstract

Radicalization, as a concept, has been considered from different analytical angles as: the process leading from extreme values and opinions to using violence to display a political agenda (Goodwin 2018); the everyday interactions through which micro-radicalizations are generated (Holbrook 2013); a socially constructed dynamic through which active subjects co-create the sense of their biographic experience (McDonald 2018). The increasing number of terrorist attacks, in and outside Europe, requires new strategies for prevention and construction of a new “sense of being in the world.” Nevertheless, there is only one tool capable of defeating the radicalization before it takes place: the dialogue, particularly between religions, whose diversities, real or perceived, are often a justification for the radicalization and extreme forms of behavior. The EU report on prevention of radicalization and recruitment of European citizens by terrorist organizations (CE A8-0316/2015) pointed out the important role should be played by schools and education in preventing radicalization observing that enabling teachers to take an active role against all forms of discrimination and racism is crucial for this purpose. This work presents a mixed-method action-research design carried on in 5 European Countries (Belgium, France, Italy, Poland and Romania). The research outcomes provide an alternative empirical basis in designing/informing innovative anti-radicalization OER and media products based on narratives for dialogue among different religions. These will be proposed as support to the teachers of pre-adolescent and adolescent pupils in order to contrast social media influences in the construction of radical behaviors.