Use of a mediator to facilitate voluntary agreements between disputants is becoming a widely used method of conflict resolution in a variety of contexts. This study simulated a dispute to examine the influence of mediator and negotiator gender on mediator behavior. Male (N=94) and female (N=94) college students mediated a computer-simulated…

An in-depth, exploratory analysis was conducted covering nine cases in which mediation was used as an alternative to the adversary system in arriving at divorce settlements. The analyses were based on audio recordings of mediation sessions and an intensive interview with each of the parties 3 to 12 months after the divorce. Four obstacles to…

The most frequently used mediator techniques in complex negotiations, suggestion of agreement points and reward of concessions, have received some investigation. To further assess the effects of these two techniques, 80 college students participated in simulated union management negotiations. Students were randomly assigned to represent union or…

Forty pairs of separated parents were randomly assigned to attempt to settle their child custody dispute either in mediation or through adversary procedures. Outcomes of the two methods of dispute resolution were compared in regard to diversions from court, parents' evaluations of the court experience, and parents' psychological adjustment.…

This report contains four papers presented at conferences jointly sponsored by trade unionists and members of the academic community. As explained in the introduction by Michael E. Gordon, the papers focus on grievance procedures, examining both recent research on the topic and its implications for organized labor. The following papers are…

Based on a study conducted by Rutgers University, this article provides information on community college faculty bargaining in New Jersey with respect to negotiating structures, teacher salaries, scope of negotiations, contract administration, and governance agreements. After introductory material outlining the history of collective bargaining in…

Types of research currently being used in negotiating salaries and fringe benefits for faculty are discussed. As collective bargaining becomes more widespread among public colleges and universities it is suggested that the institutional researcher will be called upon to provide research relevant to the arbitration process. Master contract…

The first known analysis of a substantial number of arbitration awards in higher education is presented in an effort to determine whether arbitrators have confined their awards within the contract limitations. All of the arbitration awards generated by the four-year colleges of the State University of New York as well as the awards of the…

Arbitration decisions resulting from school district disciplinary actions and professional employee grievances are studied to determine the extent to which school district decisions are upheld by arbitrators, and to identify factors for the support, modification, or contest of a district decision. Data sources are 333 arbitration cases from 27…

Explains Connecticut's Teacher Negotiation Act (October 1979), designed to bring about negotiated contract settlements resolving board/teacher impasses and thereby avoid strikes. Responses to the author's questionnaire of Connecticut board members, district administrators, and teachers reveal broad recognition of the law's effectiveness but doubt…

Some decisions faced by a college president making the transition into the milieu of campus unionization are described. The legal prerequisites of collective bargaining on college campuses is reviewed. Inclusion or exclusion of departmental heads as part of the bargaining unit is cited as a crucial matter, and election and negotiation procedures…

A preliminary study investigating the perceptions of intergroup relations in the bargaining process supports Kenneth Burke's concepts of order and mystery. Questionnaires, interviews, and direct observations of teachers' and school boards' teams involved in contract negotiations show that people closest to the bargaining saw more order in the…

An intensive two-phase study of teachers' unions in three small school districts in southern New York State over a 10-year span investigates the changes within the union movement and assesses the impact of unionization on the school systems. The study discloses that teachers' organizations and the collective bargaining process are subject, over…

Based on an analysis of 89 collective bargaining agreements (representing 95 percent of all those in existence at four-year institutions), this book provides an overview of what has been bargained for faculty and where it has been bargained on unionized campuses. After a discussion of the history of union activity in higher education, the report…

This report discusses teacher organizing, strikes, collective bargaining and negotiations, contract settlements, economic issues, legal developments, and state legislative activities. The first section contains fact sheets and organizing literature from the National Education Association (NEA) and the American Federation of Teachers (AFT). A…