In Chapter 10, the concept of peacemaking through transforming the conflict environment, rather than addressing the conflicting issues head on, was introduced. Protracted conflicts are typically reinforced, in a feedback loop, by the environment, which has adapted to the conflict (e.g., generating multiple narratives that justify hate and revenge). This milieu-based approach, also known as conflict transformation, requires specific characteristics in those engaged in peacemaking.

Linear change is the least likely scenario in the contemporary world, where discontinuous jumps are predominant, with multiple causes working together, starting from the bottom up and generating tipping points, catastrophes, and bifurcations. Markets are often governed by uncoordinated bottom-up actions that have the capability to generate abrupt change. In mathematics, a point at which a given mathematical function is not defined or has strange properties is called a singularity. This chapter explores the singularity issue in a social context (e.g., from the perspective of black swan events, dynamical rare events, cusp catastrophe theory, the butterfly effect, bifurcations, phase transition, and the dynamics of attractors theory and the emergence of new phenomena). Black swan events are defined as unpredictable, generating extreme impact and after the fact, making people tend to fabricate an explanation that makes it appear more predictable than it really was (generating hindsight that make it seem plausible and predictable. A cusp catastrophe represents a sudden destabilization of the equilibrium, causing a “jump” from one state to another. The butterfly effect is a metaphor reflecting the idea that small things can have a nonlinear impact on a complex system. The complexity theory mentions the unexpected appearance of new emergent entities.

Paradoxical thinking requires a higher level of creativity and divergent thinking, as analyzed in this part. Divergent thinking operates like paradoxical thinking – that is, merging unexpectedly completely unrelated ideas into one functional concept. This “thinking paradox” requires specific brain properties – namely, flexibility and malleability – called “neuroplasticity.” In this process, synapses are generated and dissolved in a continuous process that occurs during wakefulness and consciousness (Askenasy & Lehmann, 2013).

This chapter defines paradoxes. It reviews several definitions, demonstrating the difference between contradictions and paradoxes. The essence of paradoxes is that they deliver a certain truth and a higher-level meaning. Contradictions are conflicting elements within the same system, whereas paradoxes are conflicting elements that reveal a previously unknown truth. A definition derived from the field of psychotherapy is also mentioned: Paradoxes are best characterized as unacceptable conclusions derived by apparently acceptable reasoning from apparently acceptable premises. Paradoxes are also seen as unacceptable conclusions derived from apparently acceptable reasoning based on seemingly acceptable premises. The definition proposed for this book is “a statement that is seemingly contradictory or opposed to common sense and yet is perhaps true,” including the broader notion of an “air of absurdity,” provided that this absurdity carries a higher-level meaning. Some historical examples are presented, such as Achilles never catching up with a much slower tortoise, the arrow paradox, the paradox of place, the liar paradox, identity paradox, and the paradox of the stone.

This chapter reviews ideas and studies that confirm the positive consequences of paradoxical thinking. It also presents methods for measuring an individual’s propensity to accept paradoxes and embrace contradictions. There seem to be a need for the establishment of a “science of contradictions” to explore the intricate psychological and social processes through which contradictions arise. Research demonstrates that a paradox mindset is associated with optimism and persistence, particularly in the face of failures. Individuals with a paradox mindset respond to a contradictory situation by cultivating optimism about their ability to navigate challenging situations. Investigating the root causes of Toyota’s success, a paper concludes that Toyota prospers by creating contradictions and paradoxes in various aspects of organizational life. Some methods for evaluating paradoxical thinking are presented, concluding with the author’s Influence of Contradictions Questionnaire (ICQ), validated and including twelve statements. This book focuses on paradoxes and the variety of their occurrences and reflections on their definitions, especially regarding paradoxes being carriers of a higher-level meaning. It does not contradict Aristotle’s law of non-contradictions (LNC).

This section introduces and delves into the concept of paradoxical thinking involved in the process of generating novel ideas. First, the concept of creativity and its specific kind of thinking, divergent thinking, are analyzed through the perspective of paradoxes in Chapter 12.

It is trivial to simply say that analyzing societal dynamics is important for understanding the flow and its consequences. The focus of this section was on a specific manifestation (i.e., singularities) – such as paradoxical occurrences – creating unpredicted, abrupt system changes. It should be considered only as the first step in studying this phenomenon, as there are numerous related issues to explore, such as the educative role of NSMs for their participants, who experience the benefits of being part of a long-term cooperative and trustful environment, together achieving a system-changing transformation. Other open issues may be related to cross-movement communication and cooperation: Do NSMs influence, directly or indirectly, external societies or groups, and, if so, how successfully?

The paradox of peacemaking lies in the fragility of peace, which, according to the dynamical systems theory of change, despite being highly desired, can easily revert to conflict (Nowak & Vallacher, 1998; Vallacher & Nowak, 2007).

Paradoxes are not only quip puns (see examples in the Introduction). They often come from philosophy and are present in the academic literature (see Chapter 1). However, they can also serve as action-drivers. Elaborating on the concept of possibilitivity (i.e., perceiving insurmountable challenges as doable; see Chapter 7), Chapter 15 presented various examples of transcending the impossible in the field of social activities. Chapter 16 provided an overview of applications of paradoxical interventions in psychotherapy. Chapter 17 demonstrated paradoxes in life, including the astounding paradox that chaos may play a positive role in various settings.

The New Social Movements are characterized by phase transitions, butterfly effects, rare and black swan events, and self-organization. The formation of social capital is characterized as an important lever for growth. Social capital’s features such as bridging, bonding, and weak and strong ties are presented. The conjunction is that a network effect of NSMs may be generated due to the multiple nonlinear interaction effects between individuals and the interplay and feedback loops between individual behavior and social dynamics. New Social Movements generate a new bottom-up culture of mutual support, a new identity with the movement and, finally, joy which charges the batteries: singing, dancing, cultural interests, and joy have accompanied social movements mentioned in the previous chapter. The contribution to NSM’s success is also a specific kind of distributed leadership, empowering others, instead of being leader centered. A prognostic model for identifying possible future singularities and turning points of NSMs is presented. The key elements are the Big Idea, social capital (which supports the networks’ effect), culture, identity and joy, and, finally, distributed leadership. The conjecture is that the cumulative effect of these factors over time increases the likelihood of a singularity occurrence. The chapter concludes with a discussion over the question why some other NSMs (e.g., the Occupy Movement) did not reach a singularity point.

Fifty years ago, the predominant conviction was that the adult brain is fixed and unchangeable. In contrast, the new concept views that the brain can adjust and modify itself. Harnessing the brain’s ability to create and open new neuronal pathways often plays a key role in rehabilitation and improvement of life quality. Healthy brain neuroplasticity may be augmented. Synaptic plasticity is defined as forming new neural paths and connections, whereas neurogenesis indicates that stem cells can reproduce fully functioning brain cells. Synaptic brain plasticity refers to changes in neural pathways and synapses that are due to alternations in behavior, environment, and neural processes, and is one of the important neurochemical foundations of learning and memory. Neurotransmitters convey a message from one neuron to another. One such neurotransmitter is dopamine, initiating further motivated behavior. Endorphins serve as a brain-controlled painkiller, also delivering feelings of pleasure and euphoria. Serotonin is best known for its role in conveying a sense of contentedness. Neurotransmitters also create feelings of pleasure. Neurogenesis is the process by which neurons are produced by the brain’s stem cells. It is most active during embryonic development and is responsible for producing all of the various types of neurons in an organism, but also continues throughout adult life

Opening the mind to paradoxes and paradoxical thinking requires a malleable and plastic brain. The brain can be influenced by various factors, such as rehabilitation, physical exercise, and noninvasive transcranial brain stimulation; combining these interventions can have a synergistic impact on inducing neuroplasticity. The Feldenkrais approach uses atypical yet gentle and mindful sets of movements to expand the range of motion in a balanced way. This is done through augmenting neuroplasticity and new neuronal pathways related to the new movements. The Feldenkrais approach is used for enhancing the neuroplasticity and, consequently, creativity of an individual’s mind. It was also found that creating metaphors activates parts of brain that involve flexible imagination. In research metaphors were used to spark divergent thinking. The subjects of a study encompassing global creative people, above all, enjoyed discovering and innovating. When asked to choose from a list of what life experience delivers the most pleasure, the answer most frequently chosen was “designing or discovering something new.” They simply enjoy discovering and creating above all else. Joy plays a key role in boosting creativity. The influence of dancing on enhancing the brain’s structural and functional capacities has been documented in several studies.

Creativity may also be viewed as a capacity of the human mind (i.e., an ability to generate ideas that are novel, unexpected, and valuable). Creativity indicates a constellation of traits: Creative persons are self-confident, independent, and unopposed to risk-taking. They have good intuition and display flexible, original thinking; moreover, they dare to differ, challenge routines, and – if necessary – bend a few rules. Finally, creative people can think flexibly. Creative people generate ideas that, at the time, are viewed as novel and perhaps ridiculous, as well as “unreasonable.” Some authors perceive the origins of creativity as a “wonder,” happening in both historical and mundane contexts. The best examples of creativity come from children, as they are free from the pressures of achievement or competition. Children simply play, addressing challenges and innovating. Creativity can be characterized as the mutual reinforcement of two distinct mental models, namely, convergent and divergent thinking, the latter being usually a spontaneous, free-flowing process, where thoughts appear in a “non-logical” manner. Some examples of divergent thinking are herein presented.

The following story reflects the content and spirit of this section well.