Conflict Resolution Quarterly

Publisher:: Wiley
Publication date:: 2021-02-01

ISBN:: 1541-1508

Issue Number

No. 41-2, December 2023

Latest documents

Neutrality in Spain and Chile from the perspective of mediators: A literature review
This paper is based on the analysis of the importance given to neutrality in the intervention of mediators, with special emphasis on the legislation and codes of conduct followed by mediators in Spain and Chile. For this purpose, a review of the literature on neutrality has been carried out using various scientific databases and an analysis of the legislation in these countries. The aim of this analysis was to highlight the research carried out by mediation professionals on this issue and to propose possible solutions. Among the results achieved is the affirmation that neutrality is in the mediation process and not in the mediator. This reality is not reflected in ethical codes of conduct or in legislation. Therefore, it is proposed the need to elaborate a universal and accredited code of ethics, which would help to consolidate the current polyphony of voices on mediator neutrality in the countries where mediation is used. As mediation as a profession becomes more and more established, it is essential that the principle of neutrality be understood unambiguously. In contrast to the rules that appear in current legislation and in certain codes of conduct, mediators should not be subject to the constraints of achieving personal neutrality.
Conflict resolution vis‐à‐vis horrific events
Relational transformation or resolution only? A quantitative analysis of mediator and disputant behaviors, and mediation outcome
This research quantitatively investigated the behaviors observed in mediation. We coded 16 mediation sessions recorded at a secondary school in the United Kingdom as relational transformation or resolution only and examined if the frequencies of the behaviors were significantly different between these two categories. We also investigated how the characteristics of their behaviors were correlated. Results indicated that the frequencies of the mediator's empathetic and the disputant's open, expansive, and defiant behaviors were significantly different between the two categories. Our findings also suggested several positive correlations between the behaviors, including the disputant's open and expansive, open and the mediator's empathetic, expansive and the mediator's eliciting, and negative between open and the mediator's directive, and defiant and the mediator's eliciting behaviors. Our findings mostly supported what has been widely discussed among the mediation researchers and practitioners—active listening, empathy, and impartiality, but also found a mutually enhancing relationship between the disputant's open and expansive behaviors. For relational transformation, we argue that the mediator should demonstrate empathy to help the disputant's open expression while asking eliciting questions to encourage their mutual acknowledgment and preclude defiance.
Precipitants of the ineffective labor act enforcement in Zimbabwe
The research sought to establish precipitants of ineffective labor act enforcement in the Gokwe area in Zimbabwe. A quantitative approach was used in this study. A survey study design was utilized through the use of a structured questionnaire. The stratified sampling method was used to select 80 participants. What emerged as major precipitants of ineffective labor act enforcement in the country, were lack of education, the legal cost involved, lack of representation, contradictions between Labor Officers and Designated Agents, and the bias of labor act enforcers as well as the distance traveled to seek labor justice. To ensure workers are more conscious of their rights, there should be a rollout of labor act educational campaigns in the country to inform employees and employers of their rights and their boundaries. The Government should remove application costs paid by the winning party at the labor court. To reduce the distance, the government should revisit the labor act, particularly on the issue of designated agents to grant labor officers some power within the jurisdictions of the designated agents to stimulate labor act enforcement and good practices. The dispute resolution system should be less expensive.
Climate‐related armed conflict and communities' resistance to Rural Grazing Area settlement policy in Nigeria's Middlebelt
In Nigeria, resource contests have sparked unending ecological conflict. As a result, conflict resolution measures have been proposed to mitigate climate‐related conflict. However, the acceptance of such policies is hampered by ethnic suspicions, communities' exclusion, religious sensitivities, and a lack of political will. State policies are frequently based on centralized resources, which is exacerbated by the complexities of power relations between central and sub‐national authorities. Thus, this article examines communities' resistance to the Rural Grazing Area (RUGA) settlement policy in Nigeria's Middlebelt using Benue state as a reference point. The study employed a quantitative method using questionnaires. The study used a sample size of 385 questionnaires administered in Guma, Gwer‐West, Gwer‐East, Ukum, and Logo local governments in Benue state. Therefore, the article found that the failure of communities' inclusivity substantially contributed to the local revolt against the RUGA settlement policy. Specifically, the study's findings demonstrate that the possibility of losing ancestral lands, the past experience of the host communities, ethnic and political factors, and poor policy awareness were the primary factors that reinforced communities' resistance to RUGA policy. Moreover, the government's over‐reliance on an authoritarian mechanism and wrong policy choices compounded by a non‐inclusive approach contributed to policy failure to gain acceptability at the grassroots level in Benue state. As an intervention, the article recommends democratically inclusive conflict resolution strategies for climate‐related armed conflict in the region.
Interactive Peacemaking: A People‐Centered Approach by Susan H. Allen, Routledge, 2022
Issue Information
Issues of integration, language and identity among Palestinian students at an Israeli “Hebrew‐speaking” University
This study examines the experiences of Palestinian students at one of the largest universities in Israel, where most of the faculty members and students are Jewish and the language of study is Hebrew. A thematic content analysis of 15 in‐depth interviews was conducted with Palestinian students who are citizens of Israel or permanent residents living in East Jerusalem. It revealed the challenges at a Jewish‐dominated university on both an academic and a social level. Participants reported that increased exposure to their Jewish counterparts and acquiring greater proficiency in Hebrew facilitated improved intergroup contact with Jewish students. In contrast, the constraints of asymmetry, political tension, and a lack of Hebrew proficiency acted as barriers and were described as major causes of division between Palestinian and Jewish students. Furthermore, constant exposure to Jewish majority culture and the Hebrew language is found to be linked to a strong sense of Palestinian group identity. These findings expand our understanding of the interrelations between language, power and identity in asymmetric intergroup relationships.
Recovery marketing for conflict sensitive destination: Stakeholders perspective on tourism revival in Kashmir Valley (India)
This study aims to examine the destination recovery procedures through the stakeholders' lens. It focuses on identifying real‐time implications and opportunities for destination marketing authorities toward tourism revival. This paper utilized a thematic analysis with data sourced through interviews with stakeholders in the tourism industry resulting in the emergence of various subcategories, which were further grouped into six final themes. These themes include the determination and confidence of stakeholders, need for a peaceful environment, recovery from negative media propaganda, tourist awareness, and online marketing to persuade people who have already visited the destination.
Editor's foreword to Special Issue on The Promise of Moral Examplars for Conflict Resolution and Intergroup Reconciliation