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Abstract
In this paper we report on a research program investigating a model of mediator communicative competence in a divorce mediation context. The theory holds that more successful mediators quickly define specific role relationships during mediation through the use of distance, coherence and structuring mediation strategies, and they use these strategies at times that encourage constructive, and discourage destructive, interaction patterns. Data from sessions of actual divorce mediations (in ten of which agreement was reached and in ten of which no agreement was reached) indicated that structuring and reframing strategies and tactics discriminated most between the two conditions, particularly in response to disputant bolstering and integrating negotiation strategies.
Notes
William A. Donohue is Associate Professor of Communication at Michigan State University. Mike Allen and Nancy Burrell are Assistant Professors in the Department of Speech Communication at Michigan State University. The authors wish to thank Jessica Pearson for her assistance in acquiring the tapes for this analysis, and Deborah Weider‐Hatfield for preparing the transcripts. This research was supported by a grant from the Michigan State University Foundation.
