Psychosocial peer mediation as sustainable method for conflict prevention and management among refugee communities in Germany

• Published date: 01 March 2022
• Author: Helen M. E. Winter,Felix Klapprott,Muhamad Naanaa,A. Marco Turk,Sebastian F. Winter
• Date: 01 March 2022
• DOI: http://doi.org/10.1002/crq.21322

PRACTICE INSIGHTS

Psychosocial peer mediation as sustainable

method for conflict prevention and

management among refugee communities

in Germany

Helen M. E. Winter

1,2,3,4

| Felix Klapprott

2,5

|

Muhamad Naanaa

2

| A. Marco Turk

4

| Sebastian F. Winter

2,6

1

Program on Mediation and Conflict

Management, European University

Viadrina, Frankfurt Oder, Germany

2

Program on Conflict Competency and

Mental Health Literacy, R3SOLUTE

gUG, Berlin, Germany

3

Harvard Negotiation and Mediation

Clinical Program, Harvard Law School,

Cambridge, Massachusetts, USA

4

Straus Institute for Dispute Resolution,

Pepperdine University, Malibu,

California, USA

5

Department of Psychiatry and

Psychotherapy, Campus Mitte, Charité –

Universitätsmedizin Berlin, corporate

member of Freie Universität Berlin,

Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin, and

Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin,

Germany

6

Faculty of Medicine, Department of

Neurology and Experimental Neurology,

Charité –Universitätsmedizin Berlin,

corporate member of Freie Universität

Berlin, Humboldt-Universität zu Berlin,

and Berlin Institute of Health, Berlin,

Germany

Abstract

Following the arrival of over 1.2 million refugees and

asylum seekers since the 2015 European refugee crisis,

Germany has faced enormous humanitarian and socie-

tal challenges, with direct implications for participatory

peace-building efforts at the local community level. A

multitude of postmigration stressors and high preva-

lence of mental health conditions among refugees con-

tribute to the substantial burden of daily conflicts in

refugee shelters and communities. Ongoing exposure to

a conflict-prone environment, psychological distress

and stigmatization among community members can

severely impair the quality of life and aggravate exis-

ting health-related, socio-economic and integrational

challenges. Previous research has demonstrated the

feasibility of individual alternative dispute resolution

(ADR) and mental health literacy (MHL) interventions

in refugee settings. As interpersonal conflict and

psychological well-being constitute mutually inter-

dependent phenomena, integrated methodologies

Helen M. E. Winter and Sebastian F. Winter contributed equally to this study.

Received: 27 April 2021 Revised: 8 August 2021 Accepted: 16 September 2021

DOI: 10.1002/crq.21322

This is an open access article under the terms of the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial-NoDerivs License, which permits

use and distribution in any medium, provided the original work is properly cited, the use is non-commercial and no modifications or

adaptations are made.

© 2021 The Authors. Conflict Resolution Quarterly published by Wiley Periodicals LLC.

Conflict Resolution Quarterly. 2022;39:195–210. wileyonlinelibrary.com/journal/crq 195

Correspondence

Helen M. E. Winter, LL.M., Program on

Mediation and Conflict Management,

European University Viadrina, Frankfurt

Oder, Germany.

Email: euv196297@europa-uni.de

Sebastian F. Winter, M.D., Faculty of

Medicine, Department of Neurology and

Experimental Neurology, Charité –

Universitätsmedizin Berlin, Charitéplatz

1, 10117 Berlin, Germany.

Email: sebastian-friedrich.winter@

charite.de

combining ADR with MHL may offer unique value to

affected vulnerable populations. However, systemic

implementation of such mechanisms in refugee shel-

ters has remained largely unexplored. In recognition of

this unmet need and as part of the nonprofit organiza-

tion R3SOLUTE, we have developed a tailored educa-

tional curriculum directed at equipping refugees in

shelters and their local neighbor citizens with peer

mediation-based ADR and MHL skills. In this multi-

disciplinary bottom-up approach, termed psychosocial

peer mediation (PPM), participants learn to effectively

manage and prevent conflicts in their own communi-

ties. Based on our field experience with implementing

PPM in numerous refugee shelters across Germany

between 2018 and 2021, we here provide relevant prac-

tical insights and discuss best practices, with a focus on

addressing existing challenges and opportunities in the

field.

KEYWORDS

alternative dispute resolution, conflict management, mental

health literacy, peer mediation, refugees

1|INTRODUCTION

Following the arrival of over 1.2 million refugees since 2015 (Bundeszentrale für politische

Bildung, n.d.-a), Germany still faces considerable humanitarian and societal challenges.

Approximately two-thirds of refugees and asylum seekers who arrived in Germany between

2015 and 2021 come from Syria, Afghanistan, and Iraq and a majority are under the age of

30 (Bundeszentrale für politische Bildung, n.d.-b). Many have a history of exposure to violent,

traumatic, and inhumane circumstances, oftentimes with detrimental and lasting effects on

physical and/or mental health and quality of life (Nesterko et al., 2019). These repercussions

add significantly to existing socioeconomic challenges associated with resettlement and success-

ful integration into the host country. Besides extensive political ramifications, the “European

refugee crisis”is fundamentally a humanitarian crisis with a multitude of hitherto unresolved

societal and public health issues. The ethical imperative to ensure human dignity and safeguard

the unconditional worth of every human being constitutes an important ethical leitmotiv in

German policy-making (Winter & Winter, 2018). From a humanitarian standpoint, a dignified

living environment and improved access to professional health care services are pivotal, inter

alia, to address the substantial burden of conflict and psychological trauma among refugee

populations (Hajak et al., 2021). Following arrival to an initial refugee reception center, mid-

to long-term accommodation occurs in refugee shelters. A refugee shelter constitutes a

decentralized accommodation administered, in most instances, by the respective authorities of

196 WINTER ET AL.