Abstract
Effective dispute resolution systems are critical to the functioning of large universities and organizations. However, the design of dispute resolution systems is often inadequate to achieving the stated goals of the system. Analysis of the cases of 45 disputants reveals how the design of a university dispute system and the social context can prevent an ombudsperson from successfully reconciling relationships. This study shows how a dispute system that generally failed to utilize face-to-face meetings or mediation techniques between disputants in a social context of fear and limited social ties was unable to reconcile or preserve working relationships. Analysis from normative pragmatic and social contextual approaches to disputing provides a mechanism for understanding the problems encountered by this ombudsperson and provides a tool for designing more effective dispute resolution systems.
Original language | English (US) |
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Pages (from-to) | 318-342 |
Number of pages | 25 |
Journal | Journal of Applied Communication Research |
Volume | 32 |
Issue number | 4 |
DOIs | |
State | Published - Nov 2004 |
Externally published | Yes |
Keywords
- Dispute Resolution
- Normative Pragmatics
- Ombuds
- Ombudsman
- Reconciliation
- Social Context
ASJC Scopus subject areas
- Communication
- Language and Linguistics