Mediation in professional relationships in France: tactics and outcomes

This study has two goals. First, it attempts to update the various tactics used by mediators in the context of professional relationships in France. Second, the study analyses the outcomes of the different aspects of mediator action. Tying together semi‐structured interviews with mediators and social negotiators involved in mediation and non‐participatory observation, the results show the existence of a range of diversified tactics that a mediator can mobilise based on his or her perception of the existence of dynamics for agreement. In contrast to existing Anglo‐Saxon research, the mediator in the French context feels entitled to become a genuine third party and have an impact on key issues during debates. Highlighting three contingent variables (level of conflictuality, mediator's mediating experience, negotiators' mediating experience) puts the mediator's intrusion into perspective.