1. Target Group
2. Success Factors
3. Approach
4. Note


1. Target Group

Enterprises and organisations, teams or single persons from different cultures which are working in the international/global environment and would like to convert an acute conflict into a Win-Win situation.



2. Success Factors

For the mediation being successful and all participants adopting and implementing the measures with motivation, the following conditions must be fulfilled:


Cultural awareness of potential conflicts such as different

  • values,
  • knowledge bases,
  • different ways of thinking and practices,
  • problem-solving strategies and
  • verbal, nonverbal and paraverbal languages


Conflict parties

  • want an amicable solution
  • have an interest in good future relations,
  • take part in the mediation voluntarily,
  • are ready to collaborate actively and to observe the "rules of the game".
  • Furthermore, they need

    • patience,
    • perseverance,
    • tolerance and listening skills,
    • openness and
    • 100% presence.


Mediator

  • must be able to recognize misunderstandings and conflicts due to intercultural differences as well as the needs of the conflict parties,
  • has good knowledge about the facts underlying the conflict,
  • takes the position of both conflict parties (german: allparteiisch) and has their trust,
  • help the parties to articulate their feelings and interests understandable,
  • prescribes no solution and
  • stops the conversation if necessary.



3. Approach

0. Prearrangements

Making contact, preliminary meeting and situation clarification.

1. Set-up phase

At this stage, the mediator tries to create a trusting atmosphere and to give the conflict parties an opportunity to agree on rules of theirs own in addition to the standard mediation rules.

2. Views of the conflict parties

The conflict parties describe their views one after another, without be interrupted by the other party. The moderator listens actively, asks questions for better understanding and collects all important information. First motives can be recognized during this phase.

3. Mirroring

The conflict parties repeat the position and the interests of the other side with words of their own.

4. Conflict clarification and visualization of similarities

The important points of both parties are visualized and the similarities highlighted first to create a better starting point for the following discussion of the problem aspects. The objective is to elucidate the positions, needs and feelings, lying behind the conflict.

5. Working out possible solutions

After all problem aspects have been dealt with, the participants search possible solutions together e.g. by means of brainstorming and then judge their feasibilities. An uniform opinion does not always have to come out in the context of an intercultural mediation at the end. Often, it can make more sense that the conflict parties only remind themselves of the differences and accept them as specific peculiarities of the other party.

6. Agreeing on solutions

The conflict parties opt for one or several of their proposed solutions which they want to implement and perhaps agree on a follow up meeting.

7. Implementation

The conflict parties implement the agreed measures and make adjustments if necessary.



4. Note

The intercultural mediation, as described above, serves not only the voluntary solution finding in case of conflict, but also assists the mutual learning, helping the conflict parties to improve their mutual understanding and to develop a feeling for mutual opportunities.