Welcome to the survey on conflicts in intercultural teams in a missionary context

Dear active and former missionaries,

“Behold, how good and how pleasant it is when brothers dwell in unity!” is how David sings of the beneficial unity in his pilgrimage song in Psalm 133.

A team of missionaries usually sees itself as brothers and sisters in the Lord, as part of the body of Christ. This leads to the idea that unity and harmony automatically prevail and that conflicts have no place or are easy to resolve.

On the other hand, various international studies have shown that conflicts within the team are one of the most frequently cited reasons for premature departure from missionary service in avoidable cases. How does this fit together?

What are the main reasons for conflicts in intercultural teams in a missionary context? What triggers them and how are they dealt with?

What do missionaries find helpful and what can contribute to develop constructive solutions?

I dealt with these questions during my studies for my Master's degree in “Integrative Counseling” at the IHL (International University of Liebenzell).

I am very interested in what you, as missionaries, think about this topic and what you have experienced. Therefore, as part of my Master's thesis, this survey on “Conflicts in intercultural teams in a missionary context” is conducted.

Thank you very much for your willingness to participate!

The questionnaire adresses all active and former missionaries who have worked in intercultural teams in a missionary context for more than two years. In this survey, a team is defined as the people you have worked with. If you are or have been part of various teams, feel free to include experiences from different teams.

It will take about 15-20 minutes to answer the questions. A bar will be displayed on each page to show you how far you have progressed in completing the questionnaire.

All information you provide in the questionaire will be treated confidentially. No data will be passed on that could be used to identify you or your mission organization. The protection of your data and anonymity are very important to me.

My aim is to use the results for scientific purposes and to contribute to strengthening and improving conflict management in mission organizations as well as preparing new missionaries. Therefore, I thank you very much for telling me about your personal experiences. You are welcome to forward the link to the questionnaire to other missionaries.

Please answer all the questions as spontaneously as possible, without thinking for too long! There are no “right” or “wrong” answers. Please answer according to your honest opinion. Most of the questions can be answered by clicking on one of the 6 points, the meaning of which is indicated in each case, e.g.

For the sake of readability, only the masculine form is used. The female form is of course included.

If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact me: isolde.hanselmann@stud.ihl.eu

Thank you very much for your valuable contribution!

Isolde Hanselmann