Perfectionism, Basic Principle for Decision-Making and Social-Shaping

2020 Fiscal Year Final Research Report

• Project/Area Number: 16K02188
• Research Category: Grant-in-Aid for Scientific Research (C)
• Allocation Type: Multi-year Fund
• Section: 一般
• Research Field: Religious studies
• Research Institution: Doshisha University
• Principal Investigator: Nakano Yasuharu 同志社大学, 神学部, 准教授 (80631895)
• Project Period (FY): 2016-04-01 – 2021-03-31
• Keywords: クエーカー / 合意形成 / 合議形式 / 組織論 / 敵対者への愛 / 完全論 / 熟議民主主義

Outline of Final Research Achievements

The decision-making based on Quaker model, which has been traditionally uphold for more than 370 years, is done, not by majority rule or the power of arguments, but by expressing each voice and opening themselves to different opinions to the last, so that their discussions would lead to unity in a group. What this historical research of the principle of Quakers' decision-making and social-shaping shows that there are three fundamental religious premises: (1)their faith in God, who makes no confusions but unity, (２)God's revelation is given to every one partly, and so their open discussions among them helps avoid the cognitive distortions of each, and then helps reach the unity (common understanding), (3)according to the Jesus's model of "love one's enemy"(perfection), each person in a discussion group try to open themselves to different opinions to the last before the common understanding is build up.

Free Research Field

クエーカー研究

Academic Significance and Societal Importance of the Research Achievements

日本の会議の場では往々にして、参加者の意見の表明や話し合いが行われるのではなく、すでに周到に用意された議事に賛否を表明することに終始することが多い。そうした場では、話し合いの中から新しい視点や洞察を得ることが目的ではなく、如何に決定された事柄に対して合意を導くことに力点が置かれる。英米の民主主義の源流の一つのとしてＡ．Ｄ．リンゼイによって参照されるクエーカーの合議形式・組織形成のあり方について改めて鑑みることで、英米の民主制度をモデルとして構成された日本の民主制の問題点と可能性について考慮することが可能になるだろう。