NCJ Number
101381
Date Published
1986
Length
365 pages
Annotation
After explaining how mediation works, this book presents principles and techniques for laying the groundwork for effective mediation, conducting productive mediation, and reaching a settlement.
Abstract
The step-by-step account of the mediation process focuses on various types of disputes, including family, divorce, labor-management, home-school, and landlord-tenant. Guidelines for procedures before mediation begins encompass interviewing disputants to obtain background information, designing a mediation plan, and establishing trust. Procedures for conducting mediation sessions address the selection of settings suited to the type of dispute, creating the psychological conditions necessary for negotiation, setting and following a negotiating agenda, and bringing conflicts to formal settlement. Suggested strategies for dealing with unusual problems include caucuses, private meetings, and negotiating teams. Checklists, model forms to clarify procedures, a guide to mediation ethics, and sample settlement agreements are provided. Approximately 200 references and subject index.