The work of conflict mediation: Actors, vectors, and communicative relationality

Abstract

Mediation is a widely used form of third-party conflict management for which research has primarily focused on the role of mediators, but how are the relations between disputing parties constituted in communication involving written texts, such as official letters or medical reports, during mediation sessions? To gain deeper insight into the communicative dynamics through which third-party disputes are created, sustained, and resolved, this paper proposes a new theoretical perspective on mediation by focusing on how human beings and written texts can act as vectors for each other. The value of this vectorial perspective on mediation is subsequently shown through an inductive analysis of video-recorded sessions that took place at an administrative tribunal in Canada. By showing how texts (or their absence) can act as (1) conjunctive vectors that contribute to highlighting disputants’ compatibilities and help them find common ground, or (2) disjunctive vectors that contribute to highlighting their incompatibilities and obstruct their dispute resolution, this paper makes important contributions to the academic and professional literature on the role of communication in conflict mediation work, and reveals significant implications for the study and practice of conflict management in organizations, as well as scholarship on relational ontologies.

Bolstering employee relations in a public sector undertaking: validation of CODE and PLE model

“…Furthermore, Feng and Xie (2020) stated the significance of mediation as a dispute resolution mechanism in Chinese enterprises. This was theoretically extended by Brummans et al (2022) that workplace mediation enhances organization-employee relations. These studies lack in substantiating empirical evidence on the relationship between DR and ER.…”

“…Consequently, the quest for research on ER drags the attention of several scholars and practitioners. It was studied as the key concern for investigation in a diversified context considering different dimensions (Bryson, 2005; Gill and Meyer, 2013; Kim et al , 2017; Brummans et al , 2022). However, little attention was on empirical exploration of the multiple dimensions undertaken simultaneously in the power sector perspective.…”

Deific Figures and Human Bodies: Creating Hierarchies of Difference through the Incarnation of Moral Authority

“…I build on this work to show how projections of moral authority that I call deific figures mediate the text-human relationship. The idea of an incorporeal figure permeates the literature on agency but is usually left untheorized (Benoit-Barné & Cooren, 2009; Cooren, 2012; Koschmann & McDonald, 2015) or assigned a secondary role to textual agency (Brummans et al, 2022; Brummans, 2007; Jahn, 2016). Yet the literature also clearly indicates the existence of transcendent ideals “behind” material matter or texts with agency (Brummans, 2011, p. 197).…”

Coping With Burnout? Measuring the Links Between Workplace Conflicts, Work-Related Stress, and Burnout

“…The dispute should be considered a conflict when it can end positively only with the participation of a third party. Brummans et al (2022) claim that mediation is an effective method to restore cooperation between parties. Mediation helps to improve the relationships and create a safe environment, which is important aiming to avoid stress, conflict, and employee burnout (Palancı et al, 2021).…”