This paper explores mediation as a social work approach and its strengths and limitations in statutory settings, with an emphasis on family-related disputes. Mediation is a form of conflict resolution which uses an impartial third party to help people work together to resolve a conflict or dispute. The goal is to arrive at an agreement which desirably can be written down and signed by all parties. Participation in mediation is voluntary and mediators have no power to force a decision on the parties. There is an underlying philosophy that people in conflict have the wisdom within them to resolve their own disputes and that mediators are there to help this to happen, thereby enhancing the participants' self-determination and competence to solve future problems. Mediation is a new/old social work role and has proven to be a successful method of conflict resolution, particularly where participation is voluntary, the balance of power is reasonably equal and ongoing relationships between the people involved are seen to be important. Social workers have found mediation processes to be useful in a range of family situations, including parent-adolescent mediation, family conferences, mediation between parents, mediation between members of the extended family, mediation between foster parents and biological parents, and mediation between family members and agencies in the broader social system. However, the responsibilities of social workers in statutory settings may limit their ability to mediate many disputes involving their clients. Key issues for statutory social workers are highlighted including issues involving role conflict, confidentiality, voluntariness of the participants, perceived neutrality/impartiality of the mediator and balance of power and fairness.
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