"We are in African society, women normally soft-pedal": cultural orientations in the construction of justice in Nigerian adjudicative discourses
- This paper examines the crucial role of culture in the construction and negotiation of justice within Nigerian alternative dispute resolution settings, which serve as popular sites for dispute resolution. Existing studies have previously focused on the construction of identity, linguistic parameters, and contextual features in adjudicative discourses, neglecting the construction of justice and the significant role that cultural norms play in the negotiation process. This study directly addresses this lacuna by exploring the categories of cultural orientation and values through the analytical frameworks of interpersonal pragmatics and the functionalist theory of culture. Data were gathered from 20 purposively recorded hearing sessions and 30 documented cases spanning 2010 to 2017 across three dispute resolution centres in Southwestern Nigeria. The findings demonstrate that both regulatory and restorative cultural orientations distinctly characterise adjudicative encounters in Nigeria.This paper examines the crucial role of culture in the construction and negotiation of justice within Nigerian alternative dispute resolution settings, which serve as popular sites for dispute resolution. Existing studies have previously focused on the construction of identity, linguistic parameters, and contextual features in adjudicative discourses, neglecting the construction of justice and the significant role that cultural norms play in the negotiation process. This study directly addresses this lacuna by exploring the categories of cultural orientation and values through the analytical frameworks of interpersonal pragmatics and the functionalist theory of culture. Data were gathered from 20 purposively recorded hearing sessions and 30 documented cases spanning 2010 to 2017 across three dispute resolution centres in Southwestern Nigeria. The findings demonstrate that both regulatory and restorative cultural orientations distinctly characterise adjudicative encounters in Nigeria. These orientations are characterised by cultural values such as patience, tolerance, fatherhood, submission, traditional marriage rites, and male supremacy. The study concludes that culture plays a significant role in shaping the construction of justice and actively restoring societal peace.…
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