WHY PEOPLE WANT TO LEARN MEDIATion

This week I started a new mediation class. I first explained how COVID-19 has changed the way its practiced: Courts and mediation centers are doing less face-to-face sessions and more by telephone or Zoom. The class itself was virtual with the possibility, if conditions permitted, of additional face-to-face role plays and observations.

Given such changes I was curious as to why these people were willing to devote a minimum of eight evenings to the classroom portion of the training. There is a fee for the class, but the fee is returned if the person completes a set number of volunteer hours. Admittedly, this is only a sample of one class in Southern California.

The entire class was women. Over some 20 years of conducting mediation training classes there have always been more women than men participants. I notice the same in LinkedIn descriptions. There are many more women than men who identify an interest in mediation.

The goals people in this class identified were:

-        Practicing attorneys and legal assistants who did not have the opportunity to study mediation in the classes and wanted to add that skill set.

-        People who worked in governmental and community settings who saw mediation as needed in interactions with the public.

-        People from a variety of backgrounds who expressed a motivation to use mediation in community settings for public benefit.

-        People in business and real estate settings who believed mediation could help them deal with business disputes.

The goals of this class echo the legislative purpose of the California Dispute Resolution Programs Act of 1986. “Increased use of … alternatives to the formal judicial system… offer less threatening and more flexible forums for persons of all ethnic, racial, and socioeconomic backgrounds” and “provide a valuable prevention and early intervention problem-solving resource to the community” particularly in “disputes in which the parties have continuing relationships.”

When I explain the overwhelming majority of mediators are unpaid volunteers I use the comparison to CPR and heart doctors. I’m really glad there are many people are trained to use CPR  but just as glad their service in the community in no way lessens the importance of specialized heart doctors. Volunteer mediators are the CPR providers to the community. The more people learn mediation skills, the better our communities will be for it.