nonviolent communication

Nonviolent Communication (NVC) is a communication process developed by clinical psychologist Marshall Rosenberg in the 1960s and 1970s based on the principles of nonviolence and humanistic psychology. It aims to increase empathic understanding and reduce conflict in everyday interactions. It foregrounds four components—observation (distinguishing concrete observation from evaluation), feelings, fundamental needs, and requests—and encourages expressing observations and needs without judgment in order to foster voluntary cooperation.

NVC evolved from concepts used in person-centered therapy. Nonviolent Communication is both used as a clinical psychotherapy modality and also offered in workshops for the general public, particularly in regard to seeking harmony in relationships and at workplaces. It can also be applied in daily life to reduce stress. Sometimes, whole communities are founded upon its principles. NVC has been applied in clinical, educational, organisational and community settings and has been the subject of small trials and scoping reviews that report improvements in self-reported empathy and interpersonal outcomes; however, the evidence base is heterogeneous and reviewers have called for larger, longer and more rigorous studies, and for attention to cultural adaptation and trauma-sensitive implementation.