Blogs
You will find useful articles on conflict-related topics.
CRITICAL REFLECTION: Ground rules
This is the first in a series of short articles that I’ll be sharing in the following months to encourage critical reflection about some of the things that are typically taught in standard facilitative mediation training. These ideas have arisen from my work supervising and mentoring new mediators, who often face challenges when putting their
WHAT I’VE BEEN READING: Beyond Equity and Inclusion in Conflict Resolution by S Y Bowland, Hasshan Batts, Beth Roy and Mary Adams Trujillo
This is an incredibly powerful book, in both form and substance. I found it incredibly moving, often challenging, and sometimes very confronting. While the book is primarily situated in the USA, the stories and the messages translate into other countries such as Australia where racism, cultural dominance, and institutional oppression are equally problematic. The book’s
WHAT I’VE BEEN READING: Mediating High Conflict Disputes by Bill Eddy and Michael Lomax
Bill Eddy, co-founder of the High Conflict Institute, is well known for his work on managing conflict with what he calls “high conflict people” (HCPs). This book provides a range of process and intervention tips (including scripts for what to say in specific situations) to help mediators work with HCP in a range of conflict
Can we take the “reality” out of reality testing?
There has been a renewed interest in the intervention of reality testing in mediation in Australia with the release in December 2022 of research conducted by Lola Akin Ojelabi and Alysoun Boyle, funded by the Mediator Standards Board of Australia. The authors note at the start of the report that the phrase used in the
WHAT I’VE BEEN READING: High Conflict by Amanda Ripley
I read this book like a novel, unable to put it down! The book explores a number of case studies of high conflict, and analyses the conditions that led to the conflict and how the people involved managed to escape from the high conflict trap. One of the case studies involved the “father of mediation”
WHAT I’VE BEEN READING: Against Empathy by Paul Bloom
I’ve been reading and writing a lot about empathy recently, as part of my Working With Emotions in Conflict course, and more broadly. This book caught my attention and was fascinating reading. I do love an author who challenges some of the things we take for granted, and Bloom certainly does this. The book is
