Theory and Practice of International Mediation: Selected Essays

This volume brings together some of the most significant papers on international conflict mediation by Professor Jacob Bercovitch, one of the leading scholars in the field. It has become common practice to note that mediation has been, and remains, one of the most important structures of dealing with and resolving social conflicts. Irrespective of the level of political or social organization, of their location in time and space, and of the political sophistication of a society, mediation has always been there to help deal with conflicts. As a method of conflict management, the practice of settling disputes through intermediaries has had a rich history in all cultures, both Western and non-Western. In some non-Western countries (especially in the Middle East and China) mediation has been the most important and enduring structure of conflict resolution. Jacob Bercovitch has been at the forefront of developments in international conflict mediation for more than 25 years, and is generally recognized as one of the most important scholars in the field. His theoretical and empirical analyses have come to define the parameters in the study of mediation. This volume will help scholars and practitioners trace the history of the field, its position today and its future and will be of much interest to all students of mediation, negotiation, conflict management, international security and international relations in general.

Part 1: The Nature and Theory of Mediation 1. Social Research and the Study of Mediation: Designing and Implementing Systematic Archival Research 2. Putting Mediation in Context 3. Mediation: A Review of Performance and Analysis of Behavior 4. The Study of International Mediation: Theoretical Issues and Empirical Evidence 5. Mediation Success or Failure: The search for the Elusive Criteria Part II:Case Studies in Mediation 6. A Case Study of Mediation as a Method of International Conflict Resolution: The Camp David Experience 7. Conflict Management and the Oslo Experience: Assessing the Success of Israeli-Palestinian Peacemaking Part III: Empirical Studies in Mediation 8.Is there Madness in the Method of Mediation: Research into the Conditions of Effective Mediation (with Scott Gartner) 9. Negotiation or Mediation? An Exploration of the Factors Affecting the Choice of Conflict Management in International Conflict (with R. Jackson) 10. Who Mediates: The Political Economy of International Conflict Management (with G. Schneider) 11. Why Do They Do it Like This: An Analysis of the Factors Influencing Mediator Behavior in International Conflicts (with A. Houston) Part IV: Current Issues in Mediation Research 12.Managing Ethnic Conflicts: the Role and Relevance of Mediation 13. Managing Ethnic Civil Wars: Assessing the Determinants of Successful Mediation (with K. DeRouen) 14. Culture and International Mediation: An Empirical Assessment (with O. Elgstrom) 15. The United Nations and the Mediation of International Disputes 16. The Termination of Enduring International Conflicts: Theoretical and Empirical Considerations" (with P. Diehl and G. Goertz) 17. Preventing Deadly Conflicts: The Contribution of International Mediation