Product Description
This volume is an essential, cutting-edge reference for all practitioners, students, and teachers in the field of dispute resolution. Each chapter was written specifically for this collection and has never before been published. The contributors–drawn from a wide range of academic disciplines–contains many of the most prominent names in dispute resolution today, including Frank E. A. Sander, Carrie Menkel-Meadow, Bruce Patton, Lawrence Susskind, Ethan Katsh, Debor… More >>
The Handbook of Dispute Resolution
Tags: academic disciplines, bruce patton, carrie menkel meadow, debor, dispute resolution, ethan katsh, frank e a sander, lawrence susskind
While working my way through this collection over the past three weeks I’ve come to the conclusion that it’s a must have for anyone in the field of conflict management, whether you’re an attorney, mediator, ombudsman, judge, arbitrator, HR professional, or a frequent negotiator in any line of work. It would also be an excellent reference resource for academics in the fields of law, business, public affairs, planning, foreign affairs or peace studies.
I use the techniques of mediation and negotiation frequently in my work as a management consultant and I’m very impressed by this work. Granted, the $75 price tag is a bit steep, but after just three weeks it’s become one of my favorite and most frequently used conflict reference works, along with “Getting to Yes” and “Mind and Heart of the Negotiator.”
What sets this volume apart is its comprehensive coverage of dispute resolution, from the history to the various forms and practices that have developed over the past thirty years, including negotiation, mediation, arbitration, and ADR. One of the things I really like is that the editors have collected a broad range of original essays on so many topics, including a number of emerging fields such as on-line dispute resolution, victim-offender mediation, and a chapter on dispute resolution in schools (which happened to be a great find for me as a friend and I are currently exploring the creation of a school mediation program for public schools in Austin).
A few of the other chapters that I really enjoyed were Carrie Menkel-Meadow’s history of dispute resolution, Dan Shapiro’s essay on emotions and negotiation, and Hannah Riley Bowles’ chapter on dispute resolution and leadership. There’s something of interest in every chapter I’ve read (although I haven’t read every one), and the diversity of topics covered has sustained my interest through many evenings of reading.
I give a lot of credit to the editors for collecting original chapters from just about all of the big names in the field, with the exceptions of Fisher, Ury, Thompson and Shell. You can’t win `em all, but this is still a very impressive collection. Most importantly, it’s a tremendous amount of knowledge distilled into one book. I’m not aware of a comparable reference guide on dispute resolution that even comes close.
Rating: 5 / 5
This book is a wonderful, comprehensive collection of essays covering a wide variety of topics integral to an understanding of the “art” of negotiation. As a litigator, I find myself spending a large amount of time in negotiations. I picked up this volume because it came highly recommended by a friend of mine who has been involved in the field of negotiations for several years now, and I can only echo my friend’s recommendation. The book is organized into topical chapters, all of which can be read independently from one another and are written in a manner that makes the information, research and theories easily accessible even for relative newcomers to the field of negotiations. Most importantly, this book is geared towards giving readers not only the tools to become better negotiators, but also to explain why and how these tools are successful – information that I believe is critical to one’s ability to effectively implement negotiating techniques based on the specific situations and people one encounters. Of particular interest to me were those chapters that deal with the more psychological aspects of negotiations, such as importance of gender, emotions, identity and culture; topics that are key to an understanding of interpersonal relationships and all too often are either ignored or only superficially touched upon. I highly recommend this book to everybody interested in educating themselves about the topic of negotiations – and becoming a better negotiator along the way.
Rating: 5 / 5
I negotiate commercial transactions and related disputes for a living. I’ve been told (and I know) that my style can be abrasive and that the victories I get are at times only short-term in nature. Having heard this enough, I decided to try to educate myself on the topic. So I picked up this book because it looked the most authoritative and considered – I don’t really go for those hokey “secrets to success” books; I think its important to understand a subject and draw your own conclusions, not be told what to do. Well, its fair to say this book had everything – interesting and relevant history on the topic, practical prescriptive advice, topical discussions about the roles of emotion, identity, agents, and analytics in negotiation and dispute resolution. I thought the introduction by the editors was a great guide, and I got a lot out of the chapters by Shapiro, Bazerman, Moffitt, Stone/Heen, and Peppet. I’m not sure if I’ve yet converted its teachings to “success,” but I’m certainly better for it, and better informed. This is a great reference for anyone who encounters disputes for living, and that’s pretty much everyone.
Rating: 5 / 5
At last the best thinkers, researchers and writers on dispute resolution have been brought together in one volume to summarise the most important research findings of the past 30 years, share their practical advice, and discuss where the field might go next.
The book ranges across accessible introductions to the most influential dispute resolution work (for example, in Bruce Patton’s chapter which neatly summarises the ideas in Getting to Yes) to chapters which push the edges of contemporary research (for example, in Sheila Heen and John Richardson’s candid exploration of the limits of what is known about personality and disputes). It also covers negotiation, mediation, arbitration and litigation, and asks how to decide which resolution process best fits any given dispute.
As a teacher of negotiation skills, I found this Handbook a much-needed source of reference and advice. It will be useful both to practitioners and as a core text on any dispute resolution course. And although the price tag might look a bit hefty … just think of it as $2 per contributor!
Tristan, London.
Rating: 5 / 5
The Handbook of Dispute Resolution is a product of the Program on Negotiation [PON]at the Harvard Law School. It is a 520 page academic compendium of short articles on a wide range of aspects of negotiation and dispute resolution. It is not so much a handbook as it is a scholarly survey of articles on aspects of dispute resolution such as: personality, emotion, gender, culture, main types of ADR procedures, on-line dispute resolution, etc.
It should be read by those looking for a broad view of the dispute resolution field. Short chapters make for sustained progress through this tome.
Rating: 4 / 5