Losing - Or Attempting to Reclaim - One's Territory
Ralph Kilmann
Co-Author of the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI): Celebrating the TKI's 50th Anniversary Year (1974–2024)
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Similar to what drives reptiles and mammals to engage in what has become known as, “territorial behavior,” human beings also stake out and then defend their “claimed territories” that, in the broadest sense, can include “their” land, “their” home, “their” job, “their” status in society, “their” leadership positions in business, “their” political and religious organizations, “their” authority to make decisions and take action that affect their quality of life, and so forth. In fact, reptiles, mammals, and humans will fight to the death to protect their “claimed territory” (what’s “theirs”) from either real or imagined threats, and will also fight to the death to take back their former “territories” (e.g., “their” land, home, job, status, etc.) that have previously been seized or claimed by other people who usually have different demographic characteristics than the people who lost those territories (Walter, 2022).
As you might have realized by now, a claimed territory is usually meant to support a homogeneous tribe, especially if its members have long experienced homogeneous environments (from fetus to adulthood).?History shows few, if any, examples of a meaningful territory that was claimed for a heterogeneous community of different races, ethnicities, religions, etc. As you might surmise, the typical fear with tribal (ethnocentric) consciousness is about losing existing territory (or failing to regain previously lost territory) for one community of human beings (HOMOGENEOUS TRIBE “A”) in conflict with another community of “different” human beings (HOMOGENEOUS TRIBE “B”) who are often viewed as “objects” and, therefore, they’re not really human: us versus “them” once again.
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Kilmann Diagnostics offers a series of eleven recorded online courses and nine assessment tools on the four timeless topics: conflict management, change management, consciousness, and transformation. By taking these courses and passing the Final Exams, you can earn your Certification in Conflict and Change Management with the Thomas-Kilmann Instrument (TKI). For the most up-to-date and comprehensive discussion of Dr. Kilmann’s theories and methods, see his 2021 Legacy Book: Creating a Quantum Organization: The Whys & Hows of Implementing Eight Tracks for Long-term success.
Photo by Richard Walker on Unsplash