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Michael L. Moffitt and Robert C. Bordone, Editors, The Handbook of Dispute Resolution (Jossey-Bass 2005)
Reviewed by Joe Epstein (Conflict Resolution Services, Inc., joe@crs-adr.com)
Editors Michael Moffitt and Robert Bordone pulled together an arresting array of authors in The Handbook of Dispute Resolution, ranging from today's dispute resolution scholars to tomorrow's leaders. The contributors seek to address the topics "most important to cover in an overview of dispute resolution" and the "questions about dispute resolution [that] are most important to answer at this moment in time" (p. xi). Intended as a resource volume rather than a how-to book, the publication is part of a series by the Program on Negotiation at Harvard Law School. It is an excellent reference source and has several chapters of particular value to practicing negotiators and mediators:
- Keith G. Allred's chapter on Relationship Dynamics in Disputes: Replacing Contention with Cooperation (pp. 83-98) is particularly interesting and offers suggestions for dealing with issues of "vicious cycle trigger," "naïve realism," "confirmatory bias," and "accuser and excuser biases," among others. Allred emphasizes how important the perception of fairness is in the mediation process, noting that the fairer participants feel the process is, the more willing they are to settle a dispute and the more willing to "abide by the outcome or agreement" (p. 92).
- Bone Chips to Dinosaurs: Perceptions, Stories, and Conflicts (pp. 150-69) is a creative chapter by Douglas Stone and Sheila Heen which discusses the access parties have to different data, how they interpret the same data, and how parties build stories. In discussing causation and blame in dispute resolution, Stone and Heen state:
"We cannot see ourselves as others see us, and so our descriptions of the causes of the conflict often lack our own contribution to the problem" (p. 157).
The authors discuss the impact of emotions and emphasize the importance of framing in negotiations and mediation, noting that "[b]y winning the battle of the metaphor, we set the terms of the debate" (p. 162).
- Two other real world chapters that are particularly noteworthy are Marjorie Corman Aaron's Finding Settlement with Numbers, Maps, and Trees (pp. 202-18) on decision tree analysis, and Russell Korobkin's The Role of Law in Settlement (pp. 254-76) on application of the law on negotiation and mediation.
Unfortunately, the volume doesn't cover everything of interest. Despite the impact and importance of tort litigation in our civil justice system, this volume does not address general or mass tort litigation, class action litigation, or litigation involving catastrophic injuries. With the growing political debate over medical malpractice litigation, some might also be disappointed with the absence of a chapter addressing that issue. On a related note, none of the contributors appears to have a background as a risk manager, in-house counsel or plaintiffs' tort litigator.
Just as important, there is no chapter addressing the spiritual aspects of mediation that we find in books like The Promise of Mediation (Robert A. Baruch Bush and Joseph P. Folger), Mediating Dangerously (Kenneth Cloke), Peacemaking (Douglas Noll), and Extreme Facilitation (Suzanne Ghais). In an era when both business ethics and community ethics are in contention, if not disrepute, why aren't our foremost scholars addressing this core aspect of the mediation process?
Mediators who are involved in disputes between parties in ongoing or potentially ongoing relationships will find more chapters in this volume relevant to their practice than mediators working with parties who do not or will not have an ongoing relationship. But scholars, students, and practitioners alike will find various contributions relevant to their specific interests.
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