Introduction
In life we are constantly facing an array of spiraling moments, whether it is a spiral in our thought processes, day to day events, or in our relationships. These spirals in life can either move in an upward or downward direction, upward being the more positive of the two. When taking a close look at the possible situations that could take place, there are moments when mediation is a necessary tool for problem solving. Firmly believing that relationships are important factors in our lives, transformative mediation is one of utmost importance because it works to reverse any downward spirals taking place within our relationships. (Bush & Pope, 2002) In the following paragraphs we will take a further look into transformative mediation and how this model can be used in different situations of mediation.
Transformative Mediation defined
Transformative mediation in simple terms can be briefly explained as a form of mediation that wants to solve more than the issue at hand. Transformative mediation seeks to teach and train the parties involved to reach a positive resolution for their current problem but also any problems they may encounter in their future. (Bush & Folger, 1994) It is the major focus of transformative mediation to bring both empowerment and recognition into the session. (Bush & Folger, 1994) The goal of empowerment is to develop the parties enough that they gain the skills to make their own improved decision. The goal with recognition is that the parties involved will have an increased awareness of the situation at hand and the issues taking place within relationships with the other parties involved. (Burgess, 1997) Ultimately, Transformative mediation defined is a mediation style that doesn’t set out t...
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Meanwhile in Chapter Two, Lipsky et al. (2003) asserted that the rise of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) in the United States should be understood as “a phenomenon that is part of a new and emerging social contract.”(para 11). They further detailed the forces of change which seemingly led to the “reorganization of the way work is performed in U.S. companies” (Chapter 2, Forces of Change). Then they closed the chapter by summing up how the recognition of power imbalances between government and citizens, as well as employers and employees led to “developing new strategies and techniques for managing and resolving conflict” (Chapter 2, Conclusion, para 5).
Conflicts within relationships are inevitable and some conflict can help strengthen a relationship; however, in marriages and families, many people fail to work through their conflict, which results in unhealthy patterns of behavior. Over time, if left unresolved, these patterns of behavior can lead to a breaking of the relationship. Furthermore, most people do not set out seeking conflict within relationships, but rather they lack the emotional maturity to move through conflict. In fact, it is not the differences between the two parties that create the conflict, but rather the emotional reaction to their differences. Therefore, an intervention is required to begin the healing process of working through conflict. Often a pastor or counselor
Cloe Madanes and Anthony Robbins formed the Robbins-Madanes Center for Strategic Intervention back in 2000. The goal was to assist in resolving issues with clients’ professional and personal lives by using social sciences and psychology. “Strategic intervention strives to address the needs of all members of a family, community, or business while providing therapy and other intervention services in a shorter period of time (Cloe Madanes Biography, 2013)”. Many different methods of therapy are used in interventions, such as, negotiation, conflict resolution, Ericksonian therapy, a...
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...l (Choi, Gilbert, & Green, 2013:129). Maximizing the sensitivity of RJ practitioners towards the victims and offenders would result in thoughtfully processed mediation, a foundation in achieving the promises of RJ.
Restorative justice practices aim to rehabilitate the offender and repair the damages that were done to the victims and the community. A component of restorative justice system is victim-offender mediation. Victim-offender mediation comprises of “a mediator, who is a neutral third party, the offender and the victim are able to resolve the conflict and consequences cause by the offence and, ultimately, to understand each other” (Griffiths, 2011, p.310). Through meeting with the victims of the crime, the criminal justice system reduces the chances of secondary victimization, victims feeling mistreated by the criminal justice system (Orth, 2002 p.314). Victim-offender mediation hopes to reduce the likelihood of secondary victimization by incorporating the victim’s thoughts and feelings into
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Working in pairs with another mediator, I mediated with two clients, and helped them gain a solution that they were both happy with. This was judged by well-established mediators. The society is helping me to understand the process of mediation and the importance of being impartial in certain situations. Reach law programme 2012-2015 This programme expanded my knowledge and gave me a deeper understanding of law which only helped to reaffirm
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They argue that conflict resolution is necessary and desirable to change, emancipation and transformation. They differentiate, therefore, between conflict resolution and conflict transformation. For Critical Theorists, conflict resolution is appropriate for resolving open conflicts, while conflict transformation addresses the underlying root causes of conflicts that are not necessarily clear. By emphasising conflict transformation as a necessary process, the Critical Theorists however, ignore the fact that in other situations there is an overlap between the two
Although functions of mediators and arbitrators have several characteristics in common, there are significant instrumental differences that make them distinct from one another. Firstly, whereas the arbitration process is similar to litigation in its adversarial nature, in which parties have the objective to win the dispute, the fundamental goal of mediation is to bring the disputants to settlement through compromise and cooperation without finding a guilty party. In arbitration, parties compete against each other in “win-lose” situation. During mediation, parties work on mutually acceptable conditions with the assistance of a facilitator. In this process, mediators do not have power to make decisions, they work to reconcile the competing needs and interests of involved parties. The mediator’s tasks are to assist disputants to identify, understand, and articulate their needs and interests to each other (Christopher W. Moore,
Mediation is a way to solve a dispute without having to resort to court procedure which sometimes could turned out to be rigid, formal and time consuming especially when it needed a lot of paperwork and the possibility of adjournment which could consume years. Besides that, unlike in court, mediator as a third impartial party did not acted as a judge who decides on the resolution however, the mediator will help the parties to explore the needs and issue which before preventing them from achieving a mutual resolution and settlement. The mediation process gave the authority towards the parties to agree with each other and open up the chance for the parties to meet with a resolution at the end of the mediation session.