NCJ Number
94833
Date Published
1983
Length
153 pages
Annotation
This book explains the use and practice of negotiation and mediation in resolving conflicts, both for professional mediators and persons whose roles require mediation skills. It covers both verbal and nonverbal processes in mediation, offers case studies, and discusses special problems encountered by mediators.
Abstract
The initial chapters explore definitions of mediation, theories of conflict management, and the benefits of mediation as opposed to the win-lose philosophy of the legal system. An overview of the process of doing conflict management identifies the mediator's three major tasks as taking control of the argument, establishing the negotiating distance, and securing commitments to proceed. It also considers the setting in which the mediation takes place in light of the effect of room size and atmosphere, furniture, and mediator attire. Methods of analyzing the content and structure of the language used in mediation are described, with attention to the processes of generalization, deletion, and distortion. The next chapter details major features of bodily expression as associated with verbalized thoughts and caucusing strategies to break deadlocks. The book analyzes a simulated mediation and presents three case studies which involve a simple problem between landlord and tenant, a more intricate conflict between employer and employee, and a dispute between a divorced couple over visitation and child support payments. The final chapters focus on crisis intervention, ways to reduce the potential for violence in a mediation session and approaching the subject of weapons with clients, and dealing with hostility. A detailed curriculum for training mediators is presented. Photographs, diagrams, and approximately 60 references are supplied.