Mediation process
The PHYSICAL SPACE where the information session takes place is an essential factor to take into account to ensure that the parties decide to opt for mediation as a method to try to resolve the conflict that has brought them there.
Through the distribution of the place where the session will take place, we must seek to give prominence to the parties and promote direct communication between them., helping the parties feel comfortable. It is recommended that they sit in nearby seats, all at the same level as the mediators and ensuring that there can be direct communication and eye contact.
The parties may arrive with doubts or fears, so we must avoid “scare them away” with a cold place. Make sure the temperature is appropriate, that it is not excessively hot or cold. You can have water to offer them and it is advisable to put a box of tissues at their disposal.
The color of the walls is also important to create a pleasant climate, avoiding loud colors and opting instead for soft colors. It is advisable that the walls are not empty, to create a more welcoming room.
We must choose comfortable and not overloaded furniture. You can choose to work in a space with or without a table, depending on the taste of the mediator. If we choose to work around a table, we will opt for a round and glass type, so that it promotes good verbal communication, and especially non-verbal, not only as a way to facilitate understanding between the parties, but also contributing to working on empathy. fundamental to understanding the emotional state of the other.
Distribution of parts
Another issue to take into account will be the physical distribution of the participants.
There are three equally valid possibilities and it will be the mediator, in this case, who must make that decision beforehand.
- The first of these options will be assign the place and chair that each one will occupy and, above all, be clear about it before the parties arrive. Of course, each member must have an independent chair.
- The second Of these options is the one applied, for example, by Marinés Suares. She prefers to invite the parties to choose their seat first and let the comedians be the ones to occupy the rest, thereby promoting the feeling of comfort and decision-making capacity from the beginning.
- A third option, perhaps the one that may cause the most doubts in the mediator, is that of do not use table. The absence of movable barriers can cause two feelings in the parties: on the one hand, it can be interpreted as "I get up and leave whenever I want", understanding as an expression of freedom what fulfills that elementary principle of "voluntariness" of starting. and continue the process, or, the feeling of exposure, insecurity that nothing protects you. In this last option regarding the distribution of the parts, we recommend studying very well the profile of our mediators, background, analyzing how they behaved the first time we saw them and, above all, if this is the way in which we want to carry out After each session, what will give us a lot of information will be having that first contact in the same way, that is, without a table.
Continuing in line with what was stated in the previous paragraph, the most advisable thing is that the midfielders do not occupy places that, "a priori", confront them, but rather sit on equal terms and balance the feeling of power, in this case, the right angle could be the best of the distributions (although a right angle is mentioned, let's transfer this concept to the round table). The mediator must occupy a place where he can be at the same distance from the parties and never lose visual contact with them, facilitating communication and being able to deflect the reproaches and criticisms that often occur between the parties.
Something we should not ignore!: Respect the minimum distance between the parts. If the distance is too small the situation can be violent and if it is excessive it will encourage the discussion to be carried out in too formal terms.
When it comes to controlling the duration of each session, it will be useful to strategically place a clock on the wall, for example with your back to the middle. This will allow us to look at the clock surreptitiously to prevent our control of time from being interpreted as a gesture of boredom or disinterest.
Definitely, It is about creating a climate in which the parties feel comfortable, in an environment that generates trust that allows them to sit down and talk and seek a solution to the conflict that has brought them there.
