The Promise of Mediation: The Transformative Approach to Conflict (Hardcover)

~ (Author), Joseph P. Folger (Author) "Roughly thirty-five years ago, in a variety of places around the United States, many groups and individuals became interested in a process of dispute resolution..." (more)
Key Phrases: mative mediation, interrupts mediator, transformative framework, Della Noce, Satisfaction Story, Oppression Story (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review

"I recommend this book as it provokes creative thought, encompasses positive aspirational goals and broadens the perspective of practicing mediators." (IAM Mediation Newsletter; 12/1/2004)

Review

“The Promise of Mediation has been the single most significant influence on the modern ADR movement. This brilliant work serves as a constant reminder that mediation is about more than settling cases. Any serious student of the mediation process would be enlightened by the imaginative approach taken by the authors, and this new edition adds a wealth of new detail and substance about the approach, drawn from a decade’s experience applying it in many different contexts.”
--James Alfini, president and dean, South Texas College of Law, Houston, Texas

“The Promise of Mediation provides a road map for mediating workplace disputes in corporate America. Rather than pushing parties to settle, transformative mediation provides a process for employees to really work through their differences¾so they can move forward with a positive outlook and get back to business productively. I saw firsthand how transformative mediation improved the workplace culture at the United States Postal Service, and I have no doubt that its potential for impact on corporate America is significant. A must-read for human resource professionals, corporate counsel, and all managers committed to improving the workplace through building greater understanding between employees.”
--Cynthia J. Hallberlin, founder of REDRESS Mediation Program and former ADR Counsel of the United States Postal Service

“Bush and Folger have once again provided the field with a book that inspires and challenges us to reconnect with the reason many of us became involved with mediation in the first place. In the ten years since Bush and Folger wrote The Promise of Mediation, they have gained experience and grown in clarity regarding transformative mediation, and they skillfully share this through the second edition. It is clear that transformative mediation is here to stay and that it will continue to have a profound and enriching impact on the field.”
--Sharon Press, director, Florida Dispute Resolution Center, and former president, SPIDR

“In recent years, we have witnessed the erosion of the core values of mediation in favor of service to the forces of professionalism and legalism. The first edition of The Promise of Mediation served as a stunning reminder of the potential of mediation to empower individuals and communities in conflict. I credit Bush and Folger with reminding the field of its core values. Since the first edition, they have worked tirelessly to support the development of a practice congruent with these values. I believe that their efforts have produced a new model of mediation, one that provides a unique role for the mediator¾especially the community ‘citizen mediator.’ When we use the transformative model, we’re offering a form of help that no one else in society is offering to our fellow citizens.”
--Thomas Wahlrab, member, board of directors, National Association for Community Mediation, and coordinator, Dayton (Ohio) Mediation Center

"Being human is what human beings do. Yet our approaches to conflict analysis and resolution often dehumanize conflicts, by marginalizing emotions and avoiding discussion of painful histories. In this book, Bush and Folger help us re-imagine mediation within a relational framework where emotions and painful histories are essential features of the conflict transformation process. This framework not only focuses on the connection between people, but alos favors reflection on the parties' experiences, as human being. And by implication, mediators, as human beings, are encouraged to trust the parties in terms of their ability to move through the problems. Conflict is thus reframed as a contribution to the development of interaction, reather than a feature of life that needs 'management.' While this book contributes to our understanding of a model of mediation, it also humainzes conflict, and in the process celebrates what it means to be a human being."
--Sara Cobb, director, Institute for Conflict Analysis and Resolution, George Mason University

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Product Details

• Hardcover: 304 pages
• Publisher: Jossey-Bass; Revised edition (October 25, 2004)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0787974838
• ISBN-13: 978-0787974831
• Product Dimensions: 9.1 x 6.3 x 1.1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 15.2 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 5.0 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (3 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #79,677 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

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Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

18 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars Valuable New information for Mediators, May 10, 2005

By	Aurora Denny (California) - See all my reviews

This newly revised edition of The Promise of Mediation offers a wealth of new information on the priniciples of transformative conflict intervention. Many readers may not be aware that the revised edition actually contains almost entirely new material, reflecting new understandings of transformative mediation that have developed since the publication of the first edition. Bush and Folger offer new specifics for practice in the transformative framework of mediation through a carefully analyzed case study, in which we can see details of the "small steps" of conflict transformation. They also discuss the impact that the transformative movement has had on the field as a whole, and debunk some common misconceptions about the transformative framework. I have especially enjoyed the last chapter, which addresses, more completely than anything in the first edition, the deep underlying values that have led to the articulation of a transformative vision for mediation, and looks at possibilities for the future of the field.
This is definitely a book I would recommend to anyone interested in mediation, conflict, or just the interaction of human beings.

16 of 18 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Huge Step Forward in the Art and Science of Mediation, November 16, 2004

By	Daniel Simon "mediatordan" (Minneapolis, MN USA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I'm grateful to the authors for the significant advance in mediation thinking that this book represents. This new edition has the potential to move the entire field toward a deeper, more powerful understanding. With the original edition, and again with this one, Bush and Folger have provided great clarity to a topic that, until now, has been muddled. While other mediators and writers succumb to the pressures of conflict and become part of the problem, these authors instruct us on how to remain true to the most important principles that lead to deep healing of human conflict. If I had the need, I would only hire a mediator who had read, studied, understood and embraced this book.

2 of 2 people found the following review helpful:

5.0 out of 5 stars A Worthwhile Sequel, January 25, 2009

By	David A. (Uniondale, NY United States) - See all my reviews

This is the follow-up to the authors' watershed first edition of the book by the same name, and contrary to the fate of most sequels, this one's really worthwhile. Indeed, it's largely a new book, rather than a mere revision; it fully updates the reader on the journey and developments in "transformative mediation" over the decade since the authors' first book with the same title was published in 1995. For anyone with an interest in the transformative model of mediation (as contrasted with, for example, facilitative or evaluative mediation), this is the best, most comprehensive, and well-written volume available.