The Benefits of Peer Mediation in the Context of Urban Conflict and Program Status

Much research on the topic of violence prevention tends to survey the effectiveness of programs, including peer mediation, without attention to how programs are instituted and maintained in schools. This study of a high school peer mediation program examines several aspects of the process including the training of student mediators, the curriculum, the dynamics of actual mediation sessions, and the comments of mediators and trainers as they described the process. Peer mediation defines conflict in a way that prevents examination of certain conflict issues, especially those related to inequity and prejudice. Whereas peer mediation is designed to resolve conflicts in schools, it is the mediators themselves who benefit most from the programs—not the disputants.