An Experimental Test of Motivational and Content Control on Dispute Mediation

Abstract

Research examined the effects of two types of mediation techniques-content control and motivational control-on the likelihood of reaching agreement and on the type of agreement (integrative versus compromise) reached. A laboratory experiment was conducted in which 86 pairs of male college students acted in simulated negotiations as disputants. Trained mediators used either content control in the form of narrowing the scope of discussion, motivational control in the form of making the parties aware of the additional costs of failing to settle the dispute, both techniques, or neither technique. When the mediators used content control, the number of multi-issue disputes resolved and the likelihood producing a compromise agreement increased. The use of motivational control had no significant effects. The implications of the results for mediation practice and future research are discussed.