This book charts John W. Burton's transition from practitioner in diplomacy to pioneer in the theory of peace research, thinking on world society and conflict resolution. Born in 1915, given his father's name, it was assumed that he would follow his father and become a Christian missionary. He did not: he joined the Australian Public Service. From a junior position he rose rapidly. He was forthright and some found him irritating, or worse. He progressed to the highest levels of policy-making. Amidst some controversy, he resigned abruptly in 1951. He then worked on his farm outside Canberra, writing avidly. He did not intend to become an academic, but in 1963 he was offered a position in International Relations at University College in London and he accepted. He was key to the foundation of the International Peace Research Association (IPRA) in 1964 and of the Conflict Research Society in the UK, because he thought that words and ideas were not enough: there needed to be instruments of change. Looking back, he was, in fact, a secular missionary. His aim? Simple: to change the world.

Part 1. On John W. Burton.- Chapter 1. John W. Burton: From Cold War Politics to Peace Research Pioneer.- Chapter 2. John W. Burton: A Bibliography.- Part II. John. W. Burton Key Texts on International Relations and Peace Research.- Chapter 3. The Alternative (1954).- Chapter 4. The Problem Stated: Forms of Conflict (1962).- Chapter 5. Peace Research and 'International Relations' (1964).- Chapter 6. From Power to Steering (1965).- Chapter 7. Conflict as a Function of Change (1966).- Chapter 8. Restatement and Propositions (1968).- Chapter 9. Assessment (1969).- Chapter 10. Resolution of Conflict (1972).- Chapter 11. Some Further Comments - in Reply to Criticism (1972).- Chapter 12. Conceptualizing and models (1972).- Chapter 13. Discussion: Theory and Reality (1975).- Chapter 14. Problem-Solving (1979).- Chapter 15. The Role of Authorities in World Society (1979).- Chapter 16. Needs Theory Applied to Political Relations (1982).- Chapter 17. The History ofInternational Conflict Resolution (1985).- Chapter 18. Unfinished Business in Conflict Resolution (1990).- Chapter 19. Conflict Resolution as a Political Philosophy (1993).- Chapter 20. Conflict Provention as a Political System (1995).- Chapter 21. The Language of Conflict Resolution (1996).- Chapter 22. Civilizations in Crisis: From Adversarial to Problem-Solving Processes (1996).- Chapter 23. Needs Theory (1997).- Chapter 24. Conflict Resolution: Towards Problem-solving (1997).- Chapter 25. Conflict Resolution: The Human Dimension (1998).- Chapter 26. Peace Begins at Home (2001).- Chapter 27. Conflict Provention as a Political System (2001).- Chapter 28. Where do we go from here (2001).- Part III. Comments on John W. Burton's Work.- Chapter 29. Conflict Research Avant la Lettre.- Chapter 30. John Burton's Contribution to Conflict Resolution Theory and Practice: A Personal View.- Chapter 31. From Controlled Communication to Problem Solving: The Originsof Facilitated Conflict Resolution.- Chapter 32. Relevance of Burton's Theory and Practice for 21st Century Conflict Transformation?.- Backmatter.- Index.