The Arab Mind

The Arab Mind by Alexander Abdennur, Ph.D. A fundamental principle of effective interpersonal negotiation is that each party must seek to acquire understanding (not necessarily acceptance) of the other's position – what they think. In his newly released book, "The Arab Mind", Dr. Abdennur argues that negotiation between the West and the Arab-Islamic world requires something more fundamental – understanding not only what they think, but how they think. Dr. Abdennur argues that the resolution of the clash of Western and Arab cultures requires not only understanding the different, often contradictory positions that each culture holds on moral, religious, territorial, and political issues but also understanding the different styles of thinking that underlie the different positions they take on such issues. There is abundant evidence that styles of thinking are in large measure shaped by one's language and culture. Abdennur's penetrating analysis of the literature on Arab thinking and his own original empirical research provides evidence that a predominant characteristic of the thinking of Arab cultures is a "rational epistemic style" – a thinking style at both the individual and the social/political level that is characterized by a fundamental, overriding drive for abstraction that is reflected in a pervasive, ever-present and affect-laden drive for conceptual integration. This thinking style underlies the Arab demand that political administration be based not on pragmatism but on ideology. He argues that if the Arab's abstract thinking, that is often viewed as radical in western cultures, is compromised by demands for empiricism and compromise, the Arab world will regress into self-centered utilitarianism and demoralization. 2008, Ottawa: Kogna Publishing Inc. $38.00 softcover. Cognitive Centre of Canada: wwwcognitivecentre.ca

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