“Second Generation” Voices: Queer Youth with Lesbian/Bisexual Mothers

Research on the experiences of lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, and queer (LGBTQ) youth with LGBTQ parents is absent in the social science literature. The present qualitative, exploratory study utilized a social constructionist and queer theoretical lens through which to explore the sexual/gender identity formation and disclosure experiences of 18 LGBTQ young adults with lesbian/bisexual mothers. Findings suggest that LGBTQ parents may have a uniquely positive influence on their LGBTQ children in regard to their sexual and gender identity development. However, some participants reported perceiving societal scrutiny related to their mothers’ lesbian/bisexual identities and, thus, felt pressure to be heterosexual and gender-conforming. Furthermore, some participants did not necessarily utilize or view their lesbian/bisexual mothers as sources of support in relation to their own sexual/gender identity formation. While much more research is needed that examines the experiences of LGBTQ children with LGBTQ parents, this study represents a first step in addressing the existing literature gap.     

The Past,Present, and Future of Mediation as Seen through the Eyes of Some of Its Founders

This article is drawn from interviews with thirty‐one of mediation's “founders,” those pioneers who began mediating in the 1970s and 1980s, when the field was young. They describe what first attracted them to mediation and why they have remained active in the field. Some told us that they have found it to be both intellectually challenging and interpersonally satisfying to assist disputing parties in their search for a mutually acceptable resolution they could not find on their own. Others see mediation's collaborative approach to decision making as a means of bringing about social and political change that might be otherwise unattainable. The mediators also described the changes they have observed since they entered the field: mediation's dramatic growth, institutionalization in the judicial system, and market domination by lawyers and retired judges. Among the concerns they expressed were the prevalence of a mediation model that focuses primarily on the legal strengths and weaknesses of each party's position, and the dollar amount that should resolve the dispute, with little interest in creative outcomes. Other concerns are a lack of quality control of mediators and trainers, and unproductive debate about whether the “correct” approach to mediation is evaluative, facilitative, or transformative. The mediators who work on public policy matters, including environmental disputes, were the most positive about the opportunity for creativity in their work, considerably more so than those mediators whose practice is primarily business/commercial. The mediators' views of the future of mediation are remarkably similar — their general sense is that the type of mediation that takes place in the shadow of the courts is likely to increase and to become even more routinized than it is at present. Several respondents told us that they also expect to see substantial growth in the use of mediation to resolve public policy issues. Many of these mediators predicted that this type of mediation is likely to be carried out by organizational insiders, rather than outside interveners. As one mediator said, “Maybe there's a new set of mediation roles for people within traditional institutions, not just for free‐standing neutrals.”     

Towards a more diversified Canada: economic arguments for re-confederation

Abstract: In the ongoing Canadian debate on confederation, variations across the country are almost invariably viewed as conditions that must be removed or at best tolerated. This paper provides an alternative view and model of confederation that builds on portfolio notions of diversification. Here, instead of seeing regional differences as barriers to a strong confederation, we envision building solidly on these differences and encouraging regions to differentiate themselves. Canada's diverse regions might then realize futures that are most appropriate to their resource endowments and human aspirations and that at the same time improve the economic growth and growth-volatility characteristics of the nation as a whole. Regions might pursue their comparative advantages rather than having to forego their distinctness in striving for a “national mean” - a mean all too frequently defined by values at the centre of economic and political power. The ensuing discussion expands this argument and applies it using two specific examples: securities regulation and housing policy. The paper concludes with some suggestions for instituting a more differentiated, diversified and decentralized form of confederation. Sommaire: Dans le cadre du debat perpetuel sur la confédération au Canada, on con-sidère presque toujours que les variations qui existent à travers le pays doivent être éliminées ou, au mieux, tolérées. Dans cet article, on présente un autre modèle de confédération qui s'inspire de la notion de diversification du portefeuille. Au lieu d'envisager les differences régionales comme autant d'obstacles s'opposant à une confédération forte, on veut bâtir du solide sur ces differences et encourager les régions à se différencier entre elles. Les régions variées du Canada seraient alors à même de suivre le cherninement le mieux adaptéà leurs richesses naturelles et aux aspirations de leurs populations, tout en améliorant les paramétres de croissance et de volatilité de la croissance de la nation toute entiére. Les régions poursuivraient alors leurs avantages comparatifs, au lieu d'abandonner leurs traits distinctifs pour tendre vers une moyenne, nationale trop souvent tributaire de valeurs situées au centre du pouvoir économique et politique. On élargit ensuite cet argument et on l'applique au moyen de deux exemples concrets: la réglementation des valeurs mobilières et la politique sur le logement. En conclusion, l'article offre quelques suggestions pour quel'on adopte une confédération plus différenciée, plus diversifiée et plus décentralisée.     

Disputants' perspectives on the differences between mediation and arbitration

Conclusion Our study of grievance mediation in the coal industry expands existing knowledge about mediation in three important respects. First, we have shown that mediation can be as successful in resolving disputes when it is involuntary as when it is voluntary. Second, disputants with experience in both mediation and arbitration substantially prefer mediation to arbitration. Third, by combining the second conclusion with the results of other studies that show mediation is preferred over court adjudication, we suggest that mediation is generally preferred to adjudication, regardless of the particular type of adjudication—arbitration or court. Stephen B. Goldberg is Professor of Law at Northwestern University Law School, 357 East Chicago Ave., Chicago, Ill. 60610.Jeanne M. Brett is DeWitt W. Buchanan, Jr. Professor of Dispute Resolution and Organizations at the J. L. Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill. 60208.This article is based in part upon research reported in Brett and Goldberg, 1983.     

The Secrets of Successful (and Unsuccessful) Mediators Continued: Studies Two and Three

In a survey of 216 advocates in mediation, the successful mediator's ability to gain the confidence of the parties was cited as important to his or her success more frequently than were any of the skills used by the mediator to bring about agreement. This article discusses the means by which mediators gain the confidence of disputing parties. The article also discusses the different skill and attribute profiles of different successful mediators and the advocates' views of the reasons for mediator failure. The article considers the implications of its findings for mediators, trainers, and advocates, and concludes with suggestions for future research.     

The effectiveness of mediation: An independent analysis of cases handled by four major service providers

A study of 449 cases administered by four major providers of ADR services showed that mediation was capable of settling 78 percent of cases, regardless of whether the parties had been sent to mediation by a court or had selected the process voluntarily. Mediation also cost far less than arbitration, took less time, and was judged a more satisfactory process than arbitration.Jeanne M. Brett is the DeWitt W. Buchanan, Jr. Professor of Dispute Resolution and Organizations at the Kellogg Graduate School of Management, Northwestern University, Evanston, Ill. 60208