Integrative Discussion Groups

A basic element of a lively, inclusive democracy is conversation - in dialog either in pairs or in a group. Communal coexistence is built on personal exchange and getting to know each other. And it is only through interpersonal conversation that the social trust between fellow citizens can develop, which endures and grows even in times of conflict - and thus promotes social cohesion. This is why the ability to converse in different situations and groups, across social and cultural boundaries, is a basic prerequisite for democracy, which must be created before any controversy, debate or political discussion. For only if the ability - and also the lively need - to talk to one another exists can social debate and decision-making succeed at all - and will not lapse into zealous opposition and suspicion.

This is all the more true the more diverse and dynamic a municipality is. This is because an increasingly heterogeneous population brings together a wide range of cultural backgrounds, social milieus, family biographies, personalities and lifestyles. They can interact, complement and enrich each other - and support social cohesion in the long term. This is why, in addition to the basic procedure of Narrative Discussion Groups® at schools, these discussion groups are designed to be as diverse as possible in terms of the mix of different social contexts and cultural backgrounds, so that the various local population groups are represented in them as far as possible.

Encouraging openness to conversation

The ability to talk - especially about individual experiences in one's own lifeworld - is not a given. Talking to each other, especially when it transcends barriers of cultural, social, generational or personal difference, is challenging. Linguistic, but also psychological and emotional obstacles often stand in the way. The increasing social polarization into different “camps” and between supporters of different “perceived truths” does the rest. Conducting a conversation - exchanging ideas in a group - must first of all be learned and then constantly practised. Adolescents and young people show a great willingness and open learning ability for this, which is often overlooked. This openness to conversation should be proactively embraced, facilitated and further encouraged. It helps the young people to then build transgenerational bridges to adults and older people from different social groups and language communities in a community.

This requires real-life social learning formats that make it possible to practice dialog and conversation in a group of socially and culturally diverse young people: This is why the discussion groups are being tested with young people whose families have different backgrounds and family biographies. The result is an innovative format of inclusive community work from below, in which the young people in the discussion group also create a dialog with their respective adult environments - and communicate this back to their group. This is done in collaboration with schools, youth welfare services, civil society organizations and local volunteer initiatives - and with the young people's families. The project focuses on pupils in challenging social environments. This is because schools have the potential to bring together young people from very different backgrounds under one roof. Intensified discussion in a protected space can bring groups of different young people closer together - and promote social cohesion.

Political participation and a culture of debate in a democratic society

The aim of these discussion groups is therefore to promote communicative skills for interpersonal contact and discussion between people from different social, cultural and family backgrounds. The groups also prepare participants for self-confident and responsible participation and a culture of debate in a diverse democratic society. In the course of this, the skills that make it possible to overcome resentment, anti-democratic attitudes, group-hatred and conspiracy narratives are always strengthened. To this end, the discussion groups use methods of narrative discussion, social trust and relationship building in the group as well as conflict and process support. As a result, the project produces an exemplary concept and method formulation and creates further training materials and process descriptions. These can form the basis for further transfer, testing and consolidation of the discussion groups with young people in other municipalities in (East) Germany. The necessary local networking structure includes schools, associations and youth work as well as universities of applied sciences for social work and the state authorities for schools, youth and social affairs.