Do Business Well

Low-Skill Mediation?

Many people are surprised by how little skill and knowledge are required of the mediator. Surprise may arise from the popular belief that the mediator’s personal abilities account for more of the results of mediation than is argued here.

On a cautionary note, however, I recommend that you at least be experienced in using the 4-Step Method in ’self-mediation‘ before undertaking a third-party effort. Although it is simple to understand, pitfalls can trip the new mediator that only experience can teach her to avoid. I am reminded of the saying, ‘Good judgement comes from experience; experience comes from bad judgement.’ Give yourself several opportunities to practise bad judgement in self-mediation before offering your good judgement to others.

If you are now a mediator who holds different assumptions about your role than are presented here, I do not expect you to be persuaded so readily that some of your favourite mediation tools are less than vital. And, please remember that the 4-Step Method is designed for self-help, not for professional service. I do not suggest that more complex and demanding mediation tools may not be helpful and at times required. Mediators are eagerly invited to test this simple model and report their experiences to me c/o the publisher.

Forms of Mediation

As long as the basic mediator requirements mentioned above are met, then mediators can assist pairs of people wherever they find them. The 4-Step Method can help people manage differences and build better relationships in several sectors of life.

Managerial Mediation

I have been involvedin developing and promoting managerial mediation as a new form of participative management. Increasingly, managers are using mediation to solve productivity problems resulting from poor communication and cooperation between employees — estimated to account for 65% of job performance deficiency.

Managers hold a significant advantage, compared with mediators who are not in roles of authority. If necessary, the manager can override employees’ reluctance to participate by pointing to the impact on productivity resulting from their difficulty in working cooperatively. Because the managerial mediation session is a business meeting, not a discussion of personal issues, it is a powerful means of solving organizational problems.

Staff Mediation

Here, a staff employee performs mediation with two other employees who are not his subordinates. Typical staff mediators are personnel specialists, employee relations staff, internal organisation development consultants, employee assistance programme counsellors, and training consultants.

Marital Mediation

This emerging field has split off from family mediation and divorce mediation, both of which require specialised training. Marital mediators in private practice include psychotherapists, social workers, attorneys, counsellors and volunteer lay people. Whereas divorce mediation addresses questions of child custody and property division following divorce, which often requires legal consultation, marital mediation seeks to improve trust and intimacy between partners in mated relationships.

Friend Mediation

Here the mediator is a mutual friend of two other friends experiencing conflict. Friend mediation occurs in college dormitories, among members of personal support groups, and in informal social networks.

Community Mediation

Many innovative programmes are being developed in which volunteer members of a community act as mediators between other members. For example, a University of Minnesota programme trains faculty, staff and student volunteers to mediate between students in group living situations.

Parental Mediation

Here the mediator is a parent and the participants are two children, or one child and the other parent. A word of caution: A child’s age and stage of psychological development can affect his capacity to participate effectively in Dialogue. Since the 4-Step Method is a supportive, non- coercive exercise, no harm to the child should result as long as mediation is properly carried out. You may wish to consult a child development specialist.

Teacher Mediation

Here the mediator is a teacher who facilitates problem- solving communication between two students. An important consequence of teacher mediation is that young people learn that differences can be handled by means other than force or withdrawal.

Student Mediation

The National Association of Mediation in Education promotes a large number of projects in which students as young as elementary school age are trained as mediators to resolve disputes between their classmates.

Mediation Consultancy

Increasingly, behavioural science-based consultants are serving their organizational clients by helping key individuals enhance trust and cooperation through mediation.

The Better Way

Modern society is discovering that there is a better way to resolve conflicts than the means that we have relied upon throughout history. Although forms of third- party intervention in disputes have existed for centuries, the need has never been greater than now for peaceful ways to manage human differences.

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