NCJ Number
97333
Journal
Peace and Change Volume: 8 Issue: 2/3 Dated: special issue (Summer 1982) Pages: 81-90
Date Published
1982
Length
10 pages
Annotation
Mediation training should include a theoretical component, role playing and simulations, and observations and discussions of actual conflict resolution; it should also include five topics: conflict resolution, communication, negotiation, decisionmaking, and mediation.
Abstract
Mediators need sensitivity to others, superior listening and communication skills, knowledge of the issue or relationship, and the ability to analyze a situation imaginatively. They must also learn to maintain their nonpartisanship. Many possibilities exist for organizing and addressing the training topics; however, the training program should have internal consistency, balance, dynamism, and the involvement of experts. Although no systematic evaluation of mediator training has compared the performance of a test group and a control group, the author's experience at the Federal Mediation and Conciliation Service (FMCS) is instructive. FMCS recruited two groups of interns in 1975. They had little or no bargaining experience but underwent intensive mediation training according to the ideal model presented in this paper. After the training, they outperformed experienced FMCS mediators who had not received this training. Further study of the training process is needed. Twelve reference notes and a figure are included.