hɪz ˈɜːli tɹˈeɪnɪŋ hɐdbɪn ɪn fˈɪzɪks, bˌʌt hiː kəmplˈiːɾᵻd hɪz pˌiːˈeɪtʃ.dˈiː. ɪn nˈaɪntiːnhˈʌndɹɪd sˈɪksti nˈaɪn ɪnðə fˈækəltˌɛt fˈuːɚ dʒˈeɪsts ˈʌnd stˈɑːtswɪsˌɛnʃɐfʔˌn̩ fˈækəlti ʌv sˈoʊʃəl ænd pəlˈɪɾɪkəl sˈaɪənsᵻz æt ðə jˌuːnɪvˈɜːsᵻɾi ʌv hˈænoʊvɚ, ænd hɪz dɪsɚtˈeɪʃən wʌz ɛntˈaɪɾəld: tˈaɪm æz ɐ hˈaɪɚɹɑːɹki ʌv kɹiːˈeɪɾɪv kˈɑːnflɪkts.
His early training had been in physics, but he completed his Ph.D. in 1969 in the Fakultät für Geistes- und Staatswissenschaften (Faculty of Social and Political Sciences) at the University of Hannover, and his dissertation was entitled: Time as a Hierarchy of Creative Conflicts.