[WikiEN-l] Re: Arbitration Commitee Seeking Comment

Sun Jun 5 18:23:56 UTC 2005

I couldn't agree more, Michael.

--Mgm

On 6/5/05, Michael Snow <wikipedia at earthlink.net> wrote:
> Rebecca wrote:
> 
> >On 6/5/05, MacGyverMagic/Mgm <macgyvermagic at gmail.com> wrote:
> >
> >
> >>That's why I want to breath new life into the Mediation Committee. I
> >>think Mediation shouldn't be another step towards banning either party
> >>but a genuine effort at resolving the problem.
> >>
> >>--Mgm
> >>
> >>
> >The point is that it didn't work before, and there's been no idea of
> >how to fix the issue that ruined things before - that none of us are
> >trained mediators, and most of us simply did not have the skills to
> >bring antagonistic, warring parties together. We'd all like a
> >mediation committee that worked, but wishing doesn't necessarily make
> >it so.
> >
> >
> I don't think the problem with mediation is a lack of training or skills
> (no offense, but by and large I wouldn't call the arbitrators
> professionally trained either). Mediation can be handled by anybody with
> good sense, patience, and the ability to resist getting over-agitated by
> the emotions of the disputing parties. We actually have had quite a few
> instances of successful mediation, but many of them have happened
> outside the formal process, often handled by people who are not part of
> the Mediation Committee.
> 
> However, I agree that formal mediation is not working terribly well for
> us. One of the biggest challenges for Wikipedia mediation is simply the
> fact that we're stuck in an online, text-only medium. This affects
> mediation more dramatically than the other dispute resolution processes,
> because it takes away a key element of what normally makes mediation
> successful.
> 
> One of the reasons mediation works is because it brings the parties
> together, *face-to-face* and with an observer present. This brings into
> play all kinds of social inhibitions that force the parties to tone down
> their hostility and aggression. The resulting atmosphere is much more
> conducive for the mediator and the parties to work together and find a
> mutually acceptable solution.
> 
> Wikipedia mediation doesn't have a feasible way to recreate these
> conditions, and I doubt that even real-time communication via IRC can
> overcome this handicap. The lowered barriers against being deliberately
> offensive and the ease of miscommunication when using text are too great
> a challenge. As a result, I think that for us mediation is more likely
> to be useful much earlier in the process, as disputes are only beginning
> and before they have really had a chance to heat up. This would require
> watching more closely for situations where mediation can help, and a
> more interventionist approach from the mediators, rather than waiting
> for cases to come to them.
> 
> --Michael Snow
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