Mediator Settlement Strategies

Settling cases poses a challenging task for the mediator. Most disputes are hotly contested by both parties or they would not have progressed to the point of entering the court arena or mediation. Yet, despite differences in the nature of their cases, the organization of each program we have studied, and the style of mediation predominating in each, striking similarities exist in the techniques used by the mediators to settle cases. Observation of over 40 different mediators in 175 mediation sessions in three programs suggests that in order to do the job which they are charged with accomplishing—bringing mediation cases to settlement— mediators develop a repertoire of strategies employing a variety of sources of power. Mediator strategies fall into four principal categories: presentation of self and the program, control of the process of mediation, control of the substantive issues in mediation, and activation of commitments and norms. Mediators empower themselves by claiming authority for themselves, their task, or the program based upon values external to the immediate situation, or manipulate the immediate situation so that settlement is more rather than less likely. Based upon their differential use of these strategies, mediator styles fall along a continuum between two types: bargaining and therapy. Mediation seems to range between a bargaining process conducted in the shadow of the court to a communication process which resembles therapy in its focus upon exploring and enunciating feelings .     

COGNITIVE DEVELOPMENTAL THEORY: A Basis for Juvenile Correctional Reform?

Cognitive developmental theory has been increasingly offered as on explanation for lawbreaking. The theory suggests that lawbreaking results from individuals not having sufficiently developed reasoning abilities to resolve moral dilemmas, specificially those involving illegal acts. This article reports on on original test of the association between reasoning and law-breaking and addresses shortcomings of prior research. The article concludes that although the theory has been recommended and used as a basis for program design, there is little evidence to suggest that reasoning is, indeed, related to lawbreaking. Since ideological appeal of the theory may result in its adoption in program settings, continued empirical testing of hy-potheses derived from the theory is of considerable importance.     

Establishment of a Juvenile Police Record:

According to the symbolic interactionist perspective, the juveniles who are most likely to have a police record of arrest are those who conform to police preconceptions about delinquent types, who are perceived as a threat to others, and who are most visible to the police. Several individual and peer group characteristics can serve as cues that youths are delinquent or that they pose a threat and can increase visibility. The present study uses a survey approach to determine the relative association of these individual and peer group characteristics with the establishment of a police record. The analysis reveals that in addition to delinquent activities, fitting the common image of a delinquent and dangerous person–that is, being a male in a predominantly, male, delinquent peer group–increases a youth's chances of arrest. Moreover, committing a high proportion of offenses with a group of peers, which results in high visibility, also increases the chances of arrest.