User menu

Accès à distance ? S'identifier sur le proxy UCLouvain

Toward high-quality divorce agreements: The influence of facilitative professionals

Primary tabs

Baitar, Rachid [UCL] Buysse, Ann [Ghent University] Brondeel, Ruben [UCL] De Mol, Jan [UCL] Rober, Peter [UCL]

Studies have reported that mediation has higher settlement rates than litigation. The quality of these agreements as experienced by the parties as well as the processes that contribute to this subjective experience remains underexamined, however. In a large, representative, and multidisciplinary study of divorcing couples, we studied the relationship between the practices of lawyers and mediators and the quality of agreements experienced by their clients. We used multiple regression analysis to reveal that divorce mediation is significantly more likely than litigation to produce high-quality divorce settlements. Furthermore, we found that high-quality divorce agreements were more likely to occur when mediators and lawyers were perceived to have worked facilitatively. In addition, we found that pre-divorce conflict levels were inversely correlated with the quality of agreements. Which party initiated the divorce, the parties' gender, and the type of legal divorce did not explain variances in the quality of the agreements. In this article, we also discuss the training and practice implications of our findings. © 2012 President and Fellows of Harvard College.

Document type Article de périodique (Journal article) – Article de recherche
Access type Accès restreint
Publication date 2012
Language Anglais
Journal information "Negotiation Journal : on the process of dispute settlement" - Vol. 28, no. 4, p. 453-473 (2012)
Peer reviewed yes
Publisher Wiley-Blackwell Publishing, Inc.
e-issn 1571-9979
issn 0748-4526
Publication status Publié
Affiliation UCL - SSH/IPSY - Psychological Sciences Research Institute
Links
  1. Bailey Jo Daugherty, Robbins Susan P., Couple empowerment in divorce: A comparison of mediated and nonmediated outcomes, 10.1002/crq.115
  2. Ballard Robin H., Holtzworth-Munroe Amy, Applegate Amy G., D'Onofrio Brian, FACTORS AFFECTING THE OUTCOME OF DIVORCE AND PATERNITY MEDIATIONS : FACTORS AFFECTING THE OUTCOME OF DIVORCE AND PATERNITY MEDIATIONS, 10.1111/j.1744-1617.2010.01350.x
  3. Beck Connie J. A., Sales Bruce D., Family mediation: Facts, myths, and future prospects., ISBN:1557987483, 10.1037/10401-000
  4. Beck, Divorce and family mediation (2004)
  5. Belgian Federal Mediation Commission 2011 List of mediators http://www.juridat.be/bemiddeling/
  6. Bickerdike Andrew J., Littlefield Lyn, Divorce adjustment and mediation: Theoretically grounded process research, 10.1002/crq.3890180207
  7. Bickham Nicole L., Fiese Barbara H., Extension of the Children's Perceptions of Interparental Conflict Scale for use with late adolescents., 10.1037/0893-3200.11.2.246
  8. Bowling Daniel, Hoffman David, Bringing Peace into the Room: The Personal Qualities of the Mediator and Their Impact on the Mediation, 10.1111/j.1571-9979.2000.tb00199.x
  9. Casals, Electronic Journal of Comparative Law, 9, 1 (2005)
  10. Charkoudian Lorig, Ritis Cristian De, Buck Ramona, Wilson Carrie L., Mediation by any other name would smell as sweet-or would it? The struggle to define mediation and its various approaches, 10.1002/crq.234
  11. Dierick Paul, Lietaer Germain, Client Perception of Therapeutic Factors in Group Psychotherapy and Growth Groups: An Empirically-Based Hierarchical Model, 10.1521/ijgp.2008.58.2.203
  12. Donohue William A., Lyles Judith, Rogan Randall, Issue development in divorce mediation, 10.1002/crq.39019892404
  13. Emery Robert E., Divorce Mediation: Negotiating Agreements and Renegotiating Relationships, 10.2307/584993
  14. Emery Robert E., Laumann-Billings Lisa, Waldron Mary C., Sbarra David A., Dillon Peter, Child custody mediation and litigation: Custody, contact, and coparenting 12 years after initial dispute resolution., 10.1037/0022-006x.69.2.323
  15. Emery Robert E., Matthews Sheila G., Wyer Melissa M., Child custody mediation and litigation: Further evidence on the differing views of mothers and fathers., 10.1037/0022-006x.59.3.410
  16. Emery Robert E., Sbarra David, Grover Tara, DIVORCE MEDIATION: Research and Reflections, 10.1111/j.1744-1617.2005.00005.x
  17. Emery Robert E., Wyer Melissa M., Child custody mediation and litigation: An experimental evaluation of the experience of parents., 10.1037/0022-006x.55.2.179
  18. Fisher, Getting to yes: Negotiating agreement without giving in (1981)
  19. Gerber, Arizona Law Review, 32, 9 (1990)
  20. Gibson Kevin, Mediator attitudes toward outcomes: A philosophical view, 10.1002/crq.3890170209
  21. Goldfien, Ohio State Journal on Dispute Resolution, 22, 277 (2007)
  22. Grych John H., Seid Michael, Fincham Frank D., Assessing Marital Conflict from the Child's Perspective: The Children's Perception of Interparental Conflict Scale, 10.2307/1131346
  23. Heister John W., Sequential mediation: A necessary therapeutic intervention technique, 10.1002/crq.39019850908
  24. Hensler, Handbook of justice research in law (2000)
  25. Herrman Margaret S., Hollett Nancy L., Eaker Dawn Goettler, Gale Jerry, Mediator reflections on practice: Connecting select demographics and preferred orientations, 10.1002/crq.34
  26. Irving, Therapeutic family mediation: Helping families resolve conflict (2002)
  27. Johnson Nancy E., Saccuzzo Dennis P., Koen Wendy J., Child Custody Mediation in Cases of Domestic Violence : Empirical Evidence of a Failure to Protect, 10.1177/1077801205278043
  28. Johnston, Impasses of divorce: The dynamics and resolution of family conflict (1998)
  29. Kelly Joan B., A DECADE OF DIVORCE MEDIATION RESEARCH : Some Answers and Questions, 10.1111/j.174-1617.1996.tb00427.x
  30. Kelly Joan B., Family mediation research: Is there empirical support for the field?, 10.1002/crq.90
  31. Kelly, Mediation research: The process and effectiveness of third-party intervention (1989)
  32. Kitzmann Katherine M., Emery Robert E., Child and family coping one year after mediated and litigated child custody disputes., 10.1037/0893-3200.8.2.150
  33. Kline Galena H., Wood Lisa F., Moorephd Sarah, Validation of Modified Family and Interparental Conflict Scales for Use with Young Adults from Divorced and Non-Divorced Families, 10.1300/j087v39n03_07
  34. Kressel, The process of divorce (1997)
  35. Kressel Kenneth, The strategic style in mediation, 10.1002/crq.174
  36. Kressel, Mediation research: The process and effectiveness of third-party intervention (1989)
  37. Kruk Edward, Deconstructing family mediation practice via the simulated client technique: The case of unresolved marital attachment, 10.1002/crq.3890150407
  38. Macfarlane, The new lawyer. How settlement is transforming the practice of law (2008)
  39. Mathis Richard D., Tanner Zoe, Tanner Zoe, Effects of unscreened spouse violence on mediated agreements, 10.1080/01926189808251104
  40. Mayer, Divorce and family mediation (2004)
  41. Moore, The mediation process: Practical strategies for resolving conflict (2003)
  42. Muthén, Mplus user's guide (1998-2010)
  43. R Development Core Team, R: A language and environment for statistical computing (2011)
  44. Pearson, Mediation research: The process and effectiveness of third-party intervention (1989)
  45. Picard Cheryl, Common Language, Different Meaning: What Meidators Mean When They Talk About Their Work, 10.1111/j.1571-9979.2002.tb00743.x
  46. Poitras Jean, Le Tareau Aurélia, Quantifying the Quality of Mediation Agreements, 10.1111/j.1750-4716.2009.00045.x
  47. Riskin, Harvard Negotiation Law Review, 1, 7 (1996)
  48. Riskin, Notre Dame Law Review, 79, 1 (2003)
  49. Rogers, On becoming a person: A therapist's view of psychotherapy (1961)
  50. Sarrazin, Revue de prévention et de règlement des différends, 32, 3 (2005)
  51. Shaw Lori Anne, Divorce mediation outcome research: A meta-analysis, 10.1002/crq.20006
  52. Shestowsky Donna, Procedural Preferences in Alternative Dispute Resolution: A Closer, Modern Look at an Old Idea., 10.1037/1076-8971.10.3.211
  53. Somary Karen, Emery Robert E., Emotional anger and grief in divorce mediation, 10.1002/crq.3900080304
  54. Thoennes Nancy, Salem Peter, Pearson Jessica, MEDIATION AND DOMESTIC VIOLENCE : Current Policies and Practices, 10.1111/j.174-1617.1995.tb00346.x
  55. Tishler Carl L., Bartholomae Suzanne, Katz Bonnie L., Landry-Meyer Laura, Is Domestic Violence Relevant? : An Exploratory Analysis of Couples Referred for Mediation in Family Court, 10.1177/0886260504268003
  56. Wall James A., Stark John B., Standifer Rhetta L., Mediation : A Current Review and Theory Development, 10.1177/0022002701045003006
  57. Welsh, Divorce and family mediation (2004)
  58. Wissler Roselle L., The effectiveness of court-connected dispute resolution in civil cases, 10.1002/crq.92
  59. Wright, Child and Family Law Quarterly, 19, 481 (2007)
  60. National Institute of Statistics 2007 Marriage, divorce and Cohabitation http://statbel.fgov.be
  61. Pearson, Divorce mediation: Theory and practice (1988)
  62. Swennen, Hot personen-en familierecht [Persons and Family Law] (2010)
Bibliographic reference Baitar, Rachid ; Buysse, Ann ; Brondeel, Ruben ; De Mol, Jan ; Rober, Peter. Toward high-quality divorce agreements: The influence of facilitative professionals. In: Negotiation Journal : on the process of dispute settlement, Vol. 28, no. 4, p. 453-473 (2012)
Permanent URL http://hdl.handle.net/2078.1/161017