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Self-perception and interpersonal peacefulness: the mediating role of theory of mind and harmony

Zahra Khayyer (Educational Sciences & Psychology Department, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Islamic Republic of Iran)
Hamidreza Oreyzi (Educational Sciences & Psychology Department, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Islamic Republic of Iran)
Karim Asgari (Educational Sciences & Psychology Department, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Islamic Republic of Iran)
Sverker Sikström (Department of Psychology, Lund University, Lund, Sweden)

Journal of Aggression, Conflict and Peace Research

ISSN: 1759-6599

Article publication date: 28 May 2019

Issue publication date: 25 June 2019

983

Abstract

Purpose

A wide range of variables, including cognitive, emotional and relational factors, could affect the level of peacefulness. The purpose of this paper is to examine key variables (theory of mind (ToM) and harmony) that mediate the personality trait of peacefulness.

Design/methodology/approach

The participants were 182 university students recruited from three universities in Isfahan, Iran. Some different scales were applied in order to measure the intended peace variables.

Findings

The findings demonstrate that ToM, as the ability to attribute mental states, significantly mediates the association between interpersonal peacefulness and inhibition skill, interpersonal peacefulness and conflict resolution abilities, and interpersonal peacefulness and level of aggression. In addition, harmony mediates the relationship between intrapersonal peacefulness, hope, intrapersonal peacefulness and self-compassionate competency.

Practical implications

These findings indicate that peaceful feelings enable a person to provide more attention to the concerns of others and to relationship issues.

Originality/value

This an original type of study in the field of peace psychology.

Keywords

Acknowledgements

Conflicts of interest: there are no conflicts of interest. Ethics approval: the study was approved by the Ethics Committee of the Department of Educational Sciences and Psychology, University of Isfahan, Isfahan, Iran. The authors are grateful to express the gratitude to all the directors and staff at the University of Isfahan who helped the authors with this research, as well as the students who participated in the research.

Citation

Khayyer, Z., Oreyzi, H., Asgari, K. and Sikström, S. (2019), "Self-perception and interpersonal peacefulness: the mediating role of theory of mind and harmony", Journal of Aggression, Conflict and Peace Research, Vol. 11 No. 3, pp. 180-199. https://doi.org/10.1108/JACPR-10-2018-0383

Publisher

:

Emerald Publishing Limited

Copyright © 2019, Emerald Publishing Limited

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