Full Description
Inner Democracy: Empowering the Mind Against a Polarizing Society investigates the psychological backgrounds of contemporary societal problems such as hate speech, authoritarianism, and divisive forms of identity politics, and how we can counter such destructive forces. The book argues that a democratic society needs citizens who do more than just express their preference for free elections, freedom of speech, and respect of constitutional rights. Rather, democracy is vital only if it is deeply rooted in the hearts, minds, and selves of its participants. In the field of tension created by societal power clashes and absolute truth pretensions, the book investigates how opposition, cooperation, and participation work as innovative forces in a democratic self. Democracy is understood as a personal learning process and as a dialogical play between thought and counter-thought, between imagination and counter-imagination, and between emotion and reason.
Written for social scientists, teachers, journalists, and parents who are interested in the facilitation of democracy in a wide variety of situations, this book proposes inner democracy as an antidote against the widespread polarization in our society.
Contents
Acknowledgments
Introduction. Democracy: What Happens In Our Self?
Chapter 1. The Power-Holder: The Appeal of Absolute Control
Chapter 2. The Truth-Holder: In The Trenches of Impenetrable Righteousness
Chapter 3. Inner Democracy and Political Intolerance
Chapter 4. The Mind-Expanding Potential of Opposing and Contradictory Positions
Chapter 5. Inner Democracy As Multi-Voiced and Dialogical
Chapter 6. Between The Imprisoned Self and Free Participation
Chapter 7. Stimulating and Impeding Factors For Inner Democracy
Epilogue. Inner Democracy In A Future of Algorithms
References
