Hostname: page-component-586b7cd67f-t8hqh Total loading time: 0 Render date: 2024-11-27T18:20:59.513Z Has data issue: false hasContentIssue false
  • English
  • Français

Ombudsing in Higher Education: A Contingent Model for Mediation in University Dispute Resolution Processes

Published online by Cambridge University Press:  10 January 2013

Carlos-María Alcover
Carlos-María Alcover*
Affiliation:
Universidad Rey Juan Carlos (Spain)
*
Correspondence concerning this article should be addressed to Carlos María Alcover, University Ombudsman of Universidad Rey Juan Carlos. Departamento de Psicología, Facultad de Ciencias de la Salud. Paseo de los Artilleros s/n, 28032, Madrid (Spain). Phone: +34-914887754. E-mail: [email protected]
Get access Rights & Permissions [Opens in a new window]

Abstract

University and academia are, due to its nature, its structure and its inside relationships, a perfect breeding ground for the conflicts, disputes, problems, and grievances. In these settings, mediation is one of the dispute resolution mechanisms most used by University Ombudsperson. However, the special characteristics of university contexts make it necessary to consider and evaluate elements that may have a bearing on the effectiveness of the process and outcomes of the mediation. In this paper a model of contingent intervention in mediation processes articulated in three dimensions is put forward: a) level of balance or symmetry of power between the parties involved; b) the foreseeable temporal perspective of the relationship between them; and c) level of formalization of the mediation process. Based on the interaction between the three dimensions, a series of proposals will be formulated in order to design different strategies of intervention for mediation processes in university settings. Practical implications of this contingent model and future research on this topic are discussed.

Debido a su naturaleza, a su estructura y a las relaciones que se establecen en ellos los contextos universitarios son lugares donde surgen con frecuencia desacuerdos, problemas, conflictos y enfrentamientos. La mediación es una de las herramientas más utilizadas por los Defensores Universitarios para resolverlos. Sin embargo, las características propias de estos contextos obligan a considerar y evaluar ciertos elementos que pueden influir sobre la eficacia de los procesos y los resultados de la mediación. En este artículo se presenta un modelo contingente de mediación articulado en torno a tres dimensiones: a) nivel de simetría de poder entre las partes implicadas; b) perspectiva temporal de las relaciones entre ellas; y c) nivel de formalización del proceso de mediación. A partir de la interacción de las tres dimensiones se formula una serie de estrategias de intervención en procesos de mediación en contextos universitarios, y se discuten las implicaciones prácticas del modelo así como las futuras líneas de investigación en este ámbito.

Keywords

mediationuniversity ombudsmanconflict resolutionhigher educationmediacióndefensor universitarioresolución de conflictoseducación superior
Type
Research Article
Information
The Spanish Journal of Psychology , Volume 12 , Issue 1 , May 2009 , pp. 275 - 287
Copyright
Copyright © Cambridge University Press 2009

Access options

Get access to the full version of this content by using one of the access options below. (Log in options will check for institutional or personal access. Content may require purchase if you do not have access.)

References

Albert, R., & Howard, D.A., (1985). Informal dispute resolution through mediation. Mediation Quarterly, 10, 99–108.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Alcover, C. Ma. (2007). Encuesta sobre el uso de la mediación entre los Defensores Universitarios españoles de universidades públicas y privadas. [Survey on the use of mediation by the University Ombudsman in public and private Spanish universities]. Madrid: Universidad Rey Juan Carlos, unpublished document.Google Scholar
Ambrož, M. (2005). The mediating role of the Ombudsman in the protection of human rights. International Journal of Social Welfare, 14, 145–153.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Balachandra, L., Barrett, F., Bellman, H., Fisher, C., & Susskind, L., (2005). Improvisation and mediation: balancing acts. Negotiation Journal, 21, 425–434.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Barsky, A.E., (2002). Structural sources of conflict in a university context. Conflict Resolution Quarterly, 20, 161–176.Google Scholar
Bauer, F., (2000). The practice of one Ombudsman. Negotiation Journal, 16, 59–79.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bing, R., & Dye, L., (1992). The danger of hierarchical decision making: How a model ‘effective’ college president alienated and embittered a campus. Academe, 78, 16–19.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Bloland, P.A., & Nowak, D.B., (1968). The Ombudsman: An Informal Survey of the Implementation of the Ombudsman Concept. Los Angeles: University of Southern California (http://www.crinfo.org/action/search-profile.jsp?key=2848&type=print; access: 07/12/22).Google Scholar
Bush, R.B., & Folger, J.P., (1994). The Promise of Mediation. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Butts, T., Munduate, L., Barón, M., & Medina, F.J., (2005). Intervenciones de mediación. In Munduate, L., & Medina, F.J. (Eds.), Gestión del conflicto, negociación y mediación (pp. 265–303). Madrid: Pirámide.Google Scholar
Carnevale, P.J.D. (1992). The usefulness of mediation theory. Negotiation Journal, 8, 837–890.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Chan, H.A., (2005). The Mediator as Human Being. Lima, Ohio: Wyndham Hall Press.Google Scholar
Coleman, T., (2006). Power and conflict. In Deutsch, M., Coleman, T. & Marcus, E.C. (Eds.), The Handbook of Conflict Resolution: Theory and Practice (2nd ed., pp. 120–143). San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Conlon, D.E., Meyer, C.J., Lytle, A.L., & Willaby, H. W. (2007). Third party interventions across cultures: No “one best choice”. Research in Personnel and Human Resources Management, 26, 309–349.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Crohn, M., (1985). Dispute resolution and higher education. Negotiation Journal, 1, 301–305.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Doelker, R.E., (1989). Mediation in Academia: Practicing what we preach. Mediation Quarterly, 7, 157–160.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Espada, L., (2004). El Defensor de la institución universitaria. Vigo: Consello Social, Universidad de Vigo.Google Scholar
Folberg, J., (1983). A mediation overview: History and dimensions of practice. Mediation Quarterly, 1, 3–13.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Folger, J.P., & Jones, T.S., (1994). New Directions in Mediation. Communication Research and Perspectives. Thousand Oaks: Sage.Google Scholar
Freitag, M., (1995). Le Naufrage de l'université — Et autres essais d'épistémologie politique. Québec: Nuit Blanche, éditeur.Google Scholar
Gadlin, H., (2002). Framing new directions for theory from the experience of practitioners. Negotiation Journal, 18, 327–330.Google Scholar
Gibson, J., (1995). Can't we settle this? Student conflicts in higher education and options for resolution. New Directions for Higher Education, 23, 27–34.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Guerra, N.S., & Elliott, G., (1996). Ombudsing in an educational institution: Use of implicit and explicit power. (http://www.ombuds.uci.edu/JOURNALS/1996/ombudsing.html, access: 07/12/13).Google Scholar
Guerra, N.S. & Flinchbaugh, N., (1993). Expanding the Ombuds Office: A systems approach to dispute resolution on campus. UCI Ombudsman: The Journal 1993 (http://www.ombuds.uci.edu/JOURNALS/1993/expanding.html, access: 07/12/13).Google Scholar
Gutiérrez, M., & Martorell, M., (2007). Los Defensores Universitarios. Panorama Social, 6, 59–65.Google Scholar
Harrison, T.R., (2004). What is success in ombuds processes? Evaluation of a University Ombudsman. Conflict Resolution Quarterly, 2004, 21, 313–335.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harrison, T.R., (2007). My professor is so unfair: Student attitudes and experiences of conflict with faculty. Conflict Resolution Quarterly, 24, 349–368.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Harrison, T.R. & Morrill, C., (2004). Ombuds processes and disputant reconciliation. Journal of Applied Communication Research, 32, 318–335.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Hartman, J.B., (1977). Change and conflict in the University. Journal of Educational Thought, 11, 3–15.Google Scholar
Herrman, M.S., Hollett, N., Gale, J., & Foster, M., (2001). Defining mediator knowledge and skills. Negotiation Journal, 17, 139–153.Google Scholar
Hirschman, A.O., (1970). Exit, Voice, and Loyalty. Responses to Decline in Firms, Organizations, and States. Cambridge: Harvard University Press.Google Scholar
Holaday, L.C., (2002). Stage development theory: A natural framework for understanding the mediation process. Negotiation Journal, 18, 191–210.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holton, S.A., (1995). And now … the answers! How to deal with conflict in higher education. New Directions for Higher Education, 23, 79–89.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holton, S.A., (Ed.) (1998). Mending the Cracks in the Ivory Tower: Strategies for Conflict Management in Higher Education. Boston: Anker.Google Scholar
Holton, S.A., & Phillips, G., (1995). Can't live with them, can't live without them: Faculty and administrators in conflict. New Directions for Higher Education, 23, 43–50.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Holton, S.A., & Warters, W., (1995). Conflict management programs in the United States and Canada. New Directions for Higher Education, 23, 97–124.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Houlden, P., LaTour, S., Walker, L., & Thibaut, J., (1976). Preference for modes of dispute resolution as a function of process and decision control. Journal of Experimental Social Psychology, 14, 13–30.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kolb, D.M., (1987). Corporate ombudsman and organization conflict resolution. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 31, 673–691.Google Scholar
Kolb, D.M., & Associates (1994). When Talk Works: Profiles of Mediators. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Kressel, K., (1997). Practice-relevant research in mediation: Toward a reflective research paradigm. Negotiation Journal, 13, 143–160.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Kressel, K., (2006). Mediation revisited. In Deutsch, M., Coleman, P.T. & Marcus, E.C. (Eds.), The Handbook of Conflict Resolution: Theory and Practice (2nd ed., pp. 726–756). Hoboken: Wiley.Google Scholar
Kressel, K., & Pruitt, D.G., (1989). A research perspective on the mediation of social conflict, In Kressel, K., & Pruitt, D.G. (Eds.), Mediation Research: The Processes and Effectiveness of Third Party Intervention (pp. 394–435). San Francisco: Jossey Bass.Google Scholar
LaTour, S., Houlden, P., Walker, L., & Thibaut, J., (1976). Some determinants of preference for modes of conflict resolution. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 20, 319–356.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lewicki, R.J., Weiss, S.E., & Lewin, D., (1992). Models of conflict, negotiation and third party intervention: A review and synthesis. Journal of Organizational Behavior, 13, 209–252.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Lim, R.G., & Carnevale, P.J.D. (1990). Contingencies in the mediation of disputes. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 58, 259–272.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Mankin, L.D., (1996). The role of the Ombudsman in Higher Education. Dispute Resolution Journal, Oct., 46–49.Google Scholar
Menkel-Maedow, C., (1995). The many ways of mediation: The transformations of traditions, ideologies, paradigms, and practices. Negotiation Journal 11, 217–242.Google Scholar
Miklas, E.J., & Kleiner, B.H., (2003). New developments concerning academic grievances. Management Research News, 26, 141–147.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Moore, C.M., (1994). Why we do mediate? In Folger, J.P., & Jones, T.S. (Eds.), New Directions in Mediation. Communication Research and Perspectives (pp. 265–275). Thousand Oaks: Sage.Google Scholar
Munduate, L., Ganaza, J., Peiró, J.Mª., & Euwema, M.C., (1999). Patterns of styles in conflict management and effectiveness. The International Journal of Conflict Management, 10, 5–24.Google Scholar
Ostar, A.W., (1995). Institutional conflict. Conflict Management in Higher Education, 92, 59–62.Google Scholar
Pérez, J., Sánchez, T., & Vila, J., (2004). Los Defensores Universitarios y el reto de la calidad. Madrid: Dykinson.Google Scholar
Perinat, A., (2004). Conocimiento y educación superior. Nuevos horizontes para la universidad del siglo XXI. Barcelona: Paidós.Google Scholar
Picard, C.A., (2004). Exploring and integrative framework for understanding mediation. Conflict Resolution Quarterly, 21, 295–311.Google Scholar
Pruitt, D.G., & Carnevale, P.J.D. (2003). Negotiation in Social Conflict (2nd ed.). Pacific Grove: Brooks/Cole.Google Scholar
Rahim, M.A. (2001). Managing Conflict in Organizations (3nd ed.). Wesport: Quorum Books.Google Scholar
Raven, B.H., (1992). A power/interaction model of interpersonal influence: French and Raven thirty years later. Journal of Social Behavior and Personality, 7, 217–244.Google Scholar
Raven, B.H., Schwarzwald, J., & Koslowsky, M., (1998). Conceptualizing and measuring a power/interaction model of interpersonal influence. Journal of Applied Social Psychology, 28, 307–332.Google Scholar
Robbins, L.P., & Deane, W.D., (1986). The corporate ombuds: A new approach to conflict management. Negotiation Journal, 2, 195–205.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rooney, G., (2007). The use of intuition in mediation. Conflict Resolution Quarterly, 25, 239–253.Google Scholar
Ross, O., (2003). Situational Mediation: Sensible Conflict Resolution. Ravensdale: Issue Press.Google Scholar
Rowe, M.P., (1987). The Corporate Ombudsman: An Overview and analysis. Negotiation Journal, 3, 127–140.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rowe, M.P., (1991). The Ombudsman's role in a dispute resolution system. Negotiation Journal, 7, 353–362.Google Scholar
Rowe, M.P., (1995). Options, functions, and skills: What an organizational ombudsman might want to know. Negotiation Journal, 11, 103–114.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Rubin, J.Z., (1980). Experimental research on third-party intervention in conflict: Toward some generalizations. Psychological Bulletin, 87, 379–391.Google Scholar
Schön, D.A., (1983). The Reflective Practitioner. New York: Basic Books.Google Scholar
Schön, D.A., (1987). Educating the Reflective Practitioner. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Serrano, G. y Méndez, G., (1999). Las intervenciones de los mediadores. Revista de Psicología General y Aplicada, 52, 235–253.Google Scholar
Shapiro, D.L., & Kolb, D.M., (1994). Reducing the litigious mentality by increasing employees' desire to communicate grievances. In Sitkin, S.B., & Bies, R.J. (Eds.). The Legalistic Organization (pp. 304–326). Thousand Oaks: Sage.Google Scholar
Shelton, R.L., (2000). The institutional ombudsman: A university case study. Negotiation Journal, 16, 81–98.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shestowsky, D., (2004). Procedural preferences in alternative dispute resolution. A closer, modern look at an old idea. Psychology, Public Policy, and Law, 3, 211–249.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Shubert, J.J., & Folger, J.P., (1986). Learning from Higher Education. Negotiation Journal, 2, 395–406.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Stieber, C., (1982). Resolving campus disputes: Notes of a University Ombudsman. Arbitration Journal, 37, 6–11.Google Scholar
Stieber, C., (1991). Reflections: Seventeen years as MSU Ombudsman. MSU Alumni Magazine, Fall, 28–30.Google Scholar
Stieber, C., (2000). 57 varieties: Has the Ombudsman concept become diluted? Negotiation Journal, 16, 49–57.Google Scholar
Thibaut, J. & Walker, L., (1975). Procedural Justice: A Psychological Analysis. Hillsdale: Lawrence Erlbaum.Google Scholar
Van de Vliert, E., Euwema, M.C., & Huismans, S.E., (1995). Managing conflict with a subordinate or a superior: Effectiveness of conglomerated behavior. Journal of Applied Psychology, 80, 271–281.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Vice, J.W., (1994). University ombuds roles. Expanding the Ombuds Office: A systems approach to dispute resolution on campus. UCI Ombudsman: The Journal 1994 (http://www.ombuds.uci.edu/JOURNALS/1994/ombuds_role.html, access: 07/12/20).Google Scholar
Volpe, M.R., & Chandler, D., (2001). Resolving and managing conflicts in academia communities: The emerging role of the “pracademic”, Negotiation Journal, 17, 245–255.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Volpe, M.R., & Witherspoon, R., (1992). Mediation and cultural diversity on college campuses. Mediation Querterly, 9, 341–351.Google Scholar
Wall, J.A., (1981). Mediation: An analysis, review, and proposed research. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 25, 157–180.Google Scholar
Wall, J.A., & Callister, R.R., (1995). Conflict and its management. Journal of Management, 21, 515–558.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wall, J.A., Stark, J.B., & Standifer, R.L., (2001). Mediation. A current review and theory development. Journal of Conflict Resolution, 45, 370–391.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Wallace, G., (1993). Recent role variations in the ombudsman in education. UCI Ombudsman: The Journal 1993 (http://www.ombuds.uci.edu/JOURNALS/1993/variations.html, access: 07/11/16).Google Scholar
Warters, W.C., (1995). Conflict management in higher education: A review of current approaches. New Directions for Higher Education, 92, 71–78.Google Scholar
Warters, W.C., (2000). Mediation in the Campus Community: Designing and Managing Effective Programs. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Winslade, J., & Monk, G., (2000). Narrative Mediation: A New Approach to Conflict Resolution. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar
Wiseman, V., & Poitras, J., (2002). Mediation within a hierarchical structure: How can it be done successfully? Conflict Resolution Quarterly, 20, 51–65.CrossRefGoogle Scholar
Yarn, D.H., (Ed.) (1999). Dictionary of Conflict Resolution. San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.Google Scholar