Translating Cultures: Languages and Cultural Aspects of International Mediation

Cross-Cultural and Intercultural Mediations

In today’s challenging times, ‘conflict’ has become a prominent issue in politics and in business. More often than not, parties involved in a conflict are from very different cultures. To achieve an agreeable resolution, translating cultures in conflict resolution is vital. The proposed activities are intended to provide an invaluable opportunity to bring together academics specialising in language, translation and intercultural studies, and professionals with profound experience and interest in cross-cultural and intercultural mediations. The project investigates how research into languages, intercultural studies and translation studies can contribute effectively to the process of mediation in achieving desired outcomes.

Conflict has become a prominent issue in politics and business, exacerbated by international divides. Cultural understanding is vital to resolve conflicts and achieve an agreeable resolution.

Project Overview

Key aims and objectives of the project:

Publications

List of Journals on Mediation

Journals
Year	Author	Title
2011	Bobot, L.	Conflict Management in Buyer-Seller Relationships.
2011	Faure, G. O.	Practice Note: Informal Mediation in China.
2011	Gotti, M.	Litigational Influence on Italian Arbitration Discourse.
2011	Han, Z. R., Li, X. Y.	Discourse of International Commercial Arbitration: The Case of Mainland China.
2011	Looge, S.	Navigating the Unchartered Waters of Cross-Cultural Conflict Resolution Education.
2011	Millar, G.	Between Western Theory and Local Practice: Cultural Impediments to Truth-Telling in Sierra Leone.
2011	Nan, S. A.	Consciousness in Culture-Based Conflict and Conflict Resolution.
2011	Powell, R., Hashim, A.	Language Disadvantage in Malaysian Litigation and Arbitration.
2010	An, G. Y.	Enhancing the Effectiveness of Mediation in Korean-American Family Disputes: Cultural Sensitivity Training for Mediators and Co-mediation Teams.
2010	Qian, C.	The Culture of China’s Mediation in Regional and International Affairs
2010	Susskind, L.	Looking at Negotiation and Dispute Resolution through a CA/DA Lens.
2009	Law, S. F.	Culturally Sensitive Mediation: The Importance of Culture in Mediation Accreditation.
2009	Gerami, A.	Bridging the Theory-and-Practice Gap: Mediator Power in Practice
2009	Goldberg, R. M.	How Our Worldviews Shape Our Practice
2009	Rubenfeld, S.	Intercultural Mediation: Social, Linguistic and Psychometric Considerations
2009	Wing, L.	Mediation and Inequality Reconsidered: Bringing the Discussion to the Table
2008	Andersen, S. K., Sabater, A.	Translating the ICDR Int'l Rules into Other Languages
2008	Yu, T., Chen, G. M.	Intercultural Sensitivity and Conflict Management Styles in Cross-Cultural Organizational Situations
2008	Zweinel, E. B., Goldstein, R., Manwaring, J. A., Marks, M. B.	What Sticks:How Medical Residents and Academic Health Care Faculty Transfer Conflict Resolution Training from the Workshop to the Workplace
2007	Bannink, F. P.	Solution-Focused Mediation: The Future with a Difference
2006	Cohen, C. F., Birkin, S. J., Cohen, M. E., Garfield, M. J., Webb, H. W.	Managing Conflict During an Organizational Acquisition
2006	Davidheiser, M.	Harmony, Peacemaking, and Power Controlling Processes and African Mediation
2006	Lumpur, K.	Cultural Differences & Ethnic Bias in International Dispute Resolution An Arbitrator/Mediator's Perspective
2006	Maiese, M.	Engaging the Emotions in Conflict Intervention
2005	Davidheiser, M.	Culture and Mediation: A Contemporary Processual Analysis from Southwestern Gambia
2005	Davidheiser, M.	Mediation and Multiculturalism: Domestic and International Challenges
2005	Lichtenstein, M.	Creating Awareness of the Spiritual Dimensions of Conflict Resolution by Contemplating Organizational Culture
2005	Lieberman, E., Foux-levy, Y., Segal, P.	Beyond Basic Training: A Model for Developing Mediator Competence
2004	Baron, L.	Commentary: The Case for the Field of Community Mediation
2004	Bingham, L.	Employment Dispute Resolution: The Case for Mediation
2004	Dukes, E. F.	What We Know About Environmental Conflict Resolution: An Analysis Based on Research
2004	Lipsky, D. B., Avgar, A. C.	Commentary: Research on Employment Dispute Resolution: Toward a New Paradigm
2004	Posin, D. Q.	Mediating International Business Disputes
2004	Slate II, W. K.	Paying Attention to ''Culture'' in International Commercial Arbitration
2004	Wissler, R. L.	The Effectiveness of Court-Connected Dispute Resolution in Civil Cases
2003	Avruch, K.	Type I and Type II Errors in Culturally Sensitive Conflict Resolution Practice
2003	Brigg, M.	Mediation, Power, and Cultural Difference
2003	Chan, D. K. –S., Goto, S. G.	Conflict Resolution in the Culturally Diverse Workplace: Some Data from Hong Kong Employees
2003	Cohen, J. R.	Adversaries? Partners? How About Counterparts? On Metaphors in the Practice and Teaching of Negotiation and Dispute Resolution
2003	Crawford, S.H., Dabney, L., Filner, J.M., Maida, P.R.	From Determining Capacity to Facilitating Competences: A New Mediation Framework
2003	Kahane, D.	In Theory- Dispute Resolution and the Politics of Cultural Generalization
2003	Lebaron, M., Zumeta, Z. D.	Windows on Diversity: Lawyers, Culture, and Mediation Practice
2003	Spencer-Oatey, H., Jiang, W. Y.	Explaining Cross-Cultural Pragmatic Findings: Moving from Politeness Maxims to Sociopragmatic International Principles
2003	Vera, C. D.	Arbitrating Harmony: 'Med-Arb' and the Conflunce of Culture and Rule of Law in the Resolution of International Commercial Disputes in China
2002	Avruch, K.	Cross-Cultural Conflict
2002	Garcia, A. C., Vise, K., Whitaker, S. P.	Disputing Neutrality: A Case Study of a Bias Complaint During Mediation
2002	Kusztal, I.	Discourses in the Use and Emergence of Organizational Conflict
2002	Lucke, K., Rigaut, A.	Cultural Issues in International Mediation
2002	Valero-Garcés, C.	Mediation as Translation or Translation as Mediation?
2002	Yarn, D. H.	Transnational Conflict Resolution Practice: A Brief Introduction to the Context, Issues, and Search for Best Practice in Exporting Conflict Resolution
2001	Cohen, R.	Language and Conflict Resolution: The Limits of English
2000	Carnevale, P. J., Choi, D. W.	Culture in the Mediation of International Disputes
2000	Garcia, A. C.	Negotiating Negotiation: The Collaborative Production of Resolution in Small Claims Mediation Hearings
1999	Irving, H. H., Benjamin, M., San-Pedro, J.	Family Mediation and Culture Diversity: Mediating with Latino Families
1999	Ohanyan, A.	Negotiation Culture in a Post-Soviet Context: An Interdisciplinary Perspective
1998	Hale, K.	The Language of Cooperation: Negotiation Frames
1998	Jameson, J. K.	Diffusion of a Campus Innovation: Integration of a New Student Dispute Resolution Centre into the University Culture
1998	LeBaron, M.	Mediation and Multicultural Reality
1997	Chan, E. H. W.	Amicable Dispute Resolution in the People's Republic of China and Its Implications for Foreign-related Construction Disputes
1997	Chen, G.M., Starosta, W.J.	Chinese Conflict Management and Resolution:Overview and Implications
1997	Dominguez-Urban, I.	The Messenger as the Medium of Communication: The Use of Interpreters in Mediation
1997	McKnight, M. S.	Access to Mediation Services for Rural, Low-income, and Culturally Diverse Populations
1996	Barsky, A., Este, D., Collins, D.	Cultural Competence in Family Mediation
1996	Campbell, A.	Mediation of Children Issues When One Parent Is Gay: A Cultural Perspective
1996	Garcia, A.	Moral Reasoning in Interactional Context: Strategic Uses of Care and Justice Argument in Mediation Hearings
1991	Garcia, A.	Dispute Resolution Without Disputing: How the International Organization of Mediation Hearing Minimizes Argument

List of books on Mediation

Books
Year	Author	Title
2011	Bercovitch, J.	Theory and Practice of International Mediation Selected Essays
2011	Bhatia, V., Candlin, C. N., Gotti, M.	Discourse and Practice in International Commercial Arbitration : Issues, Challenges and Prospects
2011	Friedman, R., Olekalns, M., Oh, S.	Cross-Cultural Difference in Reactions to Facework During Service Failures
2011	Goldsmith, J. C., Ingen-lousz, A., Pointon, G. H.	ADR in Business. Practice and Issues Across Countries and Cultures
2010	Tonkin, H., Frank, M. E.	The Translator as Mediator of Cultures
2008	Trujillo, M. A.	Re-Centering Culture and Knowledge in Conflict Resolution Practice
2007	Rovine, A. W.	Contemporary Issues in International Arbitration and Mediation: The Fordham Papers 2007
2007	Xu, S.	Discourse as Cultural Struggle
2006	Mayer, C. H., Boness, C.	Intercultural Mediation & Conflict Resolution
2006	Tibor, V.	Language and Translation in International Commercial Arbitration: From the Constitution of the Arbitral Tribunal through Recognition and Enforcement Proceedings
2005	Chase, O. G., Bruner, J.	Law, Culture and Ritual: Disputing Systems in Cross-Cultural Context
2004	Bell, C., Kahane, D.	Intercultural Dispute Resolution in Aboriginal Contexts
2004	Gelfand, M. J., Brett, J. M.	The Handbook of Negotiation and Culture
2002	Cotterill, J.	Language in the Legal Process
1998	Vandenberg, A.	International Dispute Resolution: Towards an International Arbitration Culture
1998	Wadensjo, C.	Interpreting in Interaction
1997	Fry, D. P., Björkqvist, K.	Cultural Variation in Conflict Resolution: Alternatives to Violence
1996	Bercovitch, J.	Resolving International Conflicts: The Theory and Practice of Mediation
1991	Chesler, M. A.	Racial/Ethnic/Cultural Issues in Dispute Resolution
1990	Merry, S.	Getting Justice and Getting Even: legal consciousness among working-class American
1982	Abel, R.	The Politics of Informal Justice
1980	Fisher, G.	International Negotiation: A cross-Cultural Perspective
1979	Gulliver, P. H.	Dispute and Negotiations: A Cross-Cultural Perspective

Project Activities

There were two key stages in this project:

Stage One: Meeting:

The first stage was to have the UK-based scholars meet together at the University of Nottingham, in March 2012, for one day to discuss and explore the research that has been carried out in the relevant fields and those which need further investigation. The interdisciplinary aspects of the theme inductive to forging collaborative opportunities and joint funding bids will also be discussed.

Meeting Participants

Prof. Lesley Jeffries

Professor of Stylistics; Director of the Stylistics Research Centre
School of Music, Humanities and Media
University of Huddersfield

Research Interests:
The style of contemporary poetry and ideology in news reporting and political discourse, literary interpretation, language in conflict; a corpus study of poetic language.

Prof. Elizabeth Stokes

Professor of Social Interaction
The Department of Social Sciences
Loughborough University

Research interests:
Social interaction across a variety of everyday and institutional settings, using conversation analysis and membership categorization analysis; how categorial formulations are organized within sequences of action; pushing for the systematic analysis of categories to develop membership categorization studies; current projects in role-play and simulation: 1) CARM for mediation and communication skills training, 2) simulated interaction versus ‘the real thing’.

Dr. Mary Fischer

Reader in languages
School of Marketing, Tourism & Languages
Edinburgh Napier University

Research Interests:
Company language policies; language and intercultural issues as factors in international business success.

Dr. Frances Rock

Senior Lecturer
Cardiff School of English, Communication and Philosophy
Cardiff University

Research Interests:
Police language; forensic linguistics; media representations of the law; workplace language; information design; document design; ‘difficult’ language; expert-lay communication; discourse; literacies; ethnography; interactional sociolinguistics; recontextualisation; research methods.

Dr. Pierre-Alexis Mevel

Lecturer in Translation Studies
School of Cultures, Languages and Area Studies
The University of Nottingham

Research Interests:
The intersection of translation studies, sociolinguistics and film studies; media studies and translation studies by analysing the nexus between cultural identity, globalisation, borders and mobility in a discrete corpus of multilingual films and of their translations.

Dr. Vallerie Pellatt

Lecturer in Chinese Interpreting and Translating
School of Modern Languages
Newcastle University

Research Interests:
Language testing and testing of interpreting and translating, The interpretation of numerical values. Chinese numbers and numerology; numbers in Chinese culture, education and environment; Translation theory and practice, including transcreation, re-writing, and paratext.

Dr. Xiaohui Yuan

Lecturer in interpreting and Translation Studies
School of Cultures, Languages and Area Studies
The University of Nottingham

Research Interests:
Intercultural pragmatics; politeness; translation and interpreting.

Stage two: Symposium

The second stage constituted a two-day symposium, in August 2012, where the UK scholars will be joined by researchers from China, the US and other countries, and international mediators from CEDR. Each participant will make a 30 minute presentation on a topic of his/her expertise. Professional mediators will present their mediation experience in intercultural and cross-cultural contexts, and the language, cultural and translational issues that they encounter in those contexts. This will be followed by a round-table discussion between the academics and professionals to identify research gaps and how research could contribute to improving the understanding of language use, interpersonal, intercultural and translational aspects of mediation practice.

This event will take place at the University of Nottingham (University Park Campus) in the UK. The specific venue will be finalised and given from the 20th July 2012 onwards. Please watch this space.

Confirmed speakers

Professional Mediators:

Dr. Karl Mackie

CEO of CEDR; CBE
Honorary Professorship, The University of Birmingham
Visiting Professor, The University of Westminster

Profile:

Karl Mackie has mediated and facilitated cases across a rich variety of sectors of dispute with experience of parties from over 20 different countries. He has successfully mediated cases regarded by the parties as 'impossible' to settle, and was approached to facilitate settlement of two of the most complex cases to go through the English legal system (both cases settled after 18 months facilitation work). He mediated the first substantial Court of Appeal commercial case to go to mediation, the NRG case, and co-mediated the first UK health service group action to go to mediation, the Alder Hey retained organs litigation.

Mr Danny McFadden

CEDR Director for Asia
Arbitrator, Lawyer, Mediator and Trainer

Profile:

Danny McFadden is a CEDR Director having joined CEDR in 2004. He is dually qualified as a lawyer both in Australia and the UK and has been involved in negotiation, conflict resolution training, mediation and international business for over 20 years. He mediates regularly in the commercial, workplace and property sectors with a particular expertise in cross-cultural and multinational trade dispute.

Mr Duncan Campbell

Senior Mediator at CEDR
Legal Adviser of the CBI (Confederation of British Industry)

Profile:

Duncan Campbell is a commercial lawyer and Legal Adviser at the CBI with many years’ experience of dispute resolution in industry and as a practising mediator since 2000. His experience in mediation and expert determination covers IT, technology, commercial, IP and international disputes. Mediations have included many high-value projects in the public and private sectors including banking, insurance, construction, professional services and media.

Academics:

Prof. Guo-Ming Chen

Professor in Intercultural Communication
The Department of Communication Studies
The University of Rhode Island

Research Interests:

His primary research interests are in intercultural/organizational communication, including the areas of global communication, intercultural communication competence, Chinese communication behaviors, and conflict management and negotiations.

Prof. Elizabeth Stokes

Professor of Social Interaction
The Department of Social Sciences
Loughborough University

Research Interests:

Social interaction across a variety of everyday and institutional settings, using conversation analysis and membership categorization analysis; how categorial formulations are organized within sequences of action; pushing for the systematic analysis of categories to develop membership categorization studies; current projects in role-play and simulation: 1) CARM for mediation and communication skills training, 2) simulated interaction versus ‘the real thing’.

Prof. Dean Tjosvold

The Henry Y. W. Fong Chair Professor; Academic Dean Business
Management Department
Lingnan University, Hong Kong

Research Interests:

Dean Tjosvold has published over 200 articles, 20 books, 30 book chapters, and 100 conference papers. His research interests mainly lie in cooperation and competition, managing conflict, and leadership and power.

Dr. Mary Fischer

Reader in languages
School of Marketing, Tourism & Languages
Edinburgh Napier University

Research Interests:

Company language policies; language and intercultural issues as factors in international business success.

Dr. Jim O’Driscoll

Senior lecturer in English
School of Music, Humanities & Media
University of Huddersfield

Research Interests:

His research interests are informed by his first-hand experience of the use of many different languages and environments, an awareness of the variety which exists and the need for us all to understand each other better in a globalised world. His present foci include language ideology, English as a global language, the concept of face and the application of linguistic insights and methodologies to conflict resolution.

Dr. Valerie Pallett

Lecturer in Chinese Interpreting and Translating
School of Modern Languages
Newcastle University

Research Interests:

Language testing and testing of interpreting and translating, The interpretation of numerical values. Chinese numbers and numerology; numbers in Chinese culture, education and environment; Translation theory and practice, including transcreation, re-writing, and paratext.

Dr. Xiaohui Yuan

Lecturer in interpreting and Translation Studies
School of Cultures, Languages and Area Studies
The University of Nottingham

Research Interests:

Intercultural pragmatics; politeness; translation and interpreting.

Open Educational Resources

Videos of the Symposium

Abstracts

Project partners

The project is funded by AHRC Networking Development Scheme, and is in collaboration with the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution. CEDR is the leading independent mediation organisation in Europe, with over 20 years unrivalled experience in dispute resolution, conflict management, training and civil justice systems.

Project Team

Principal investigator:

Xiaohui Yuan

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Translating Cultures project

Cross-Cultural and Intercultural Mediations

Project Overview

Publications

Project Activities

Meeting Participants

Confirmed speakers

Professional Mediators:

Dr. Karl Mackie

Academics:

Open Educational Resources

Project partners

Project Team

Social Media

Translating Cultures

Legal information

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