WEEK 189
“Training in Listening”.
Listening is not as easy as we think. Best mediator can be the one who is very good at listening. Major process of mediation deals with listening. To make the participants to inculcate this technique of listening is a great challenge to the trainer. Participants may have to be made to understand the difference between and importance of (i) Hearing (ii) Understanding (iii) Remembering (iv) Evaluating ( to the extent only of finding the value of the message from the perspective of the speaker )(v) Responding., which are all the components of listening.
How does a trainer achieve this:
(i)A trainer has to prepare a thoughtful meaningful interesting narrative.
And , give the narrative as though he/she is re living the experience.
The narrative must have speaker plus one or two other persons referred to in the narrative
ii) In pre briefing – trainer has to say that “ He/she would give a narrative which is more personal in nature. Participants have to listen to the narrative very carefully . and after that they will be told what to do next.”
iii) The narrative should have narration of (i) Facts (ii) Too much of importance given to the speaker (iii) In a way– self boasting, with repetitions (iv) Many adverse comments about – the other two characters. (v) accusations (vi) Justifications (vii) At the end passing a judgment that the speaker alone is right.
iv) Once the narrative is completed, the trainer has to pass on the questionnaire to the participants:
(Example:-
- Did they feel any bias about the speaker… “YES or NO”
- What did they feel about the speaker.. ( Answer to be in not more than two sentences).
- What was the message communicated by the speaker
Answer to be in not more than 4 sentences.
- Did they feel any bias about the message ? (YES Or NO)
- Can they name the Bias? If yes, name it.
v) Give exactly 5 minutes’ time to answer the questionnaire.
vi) Collect the answers.
Read out some ( depending on the number of participants)
Debrief: What is meant by bias
What would “receiver bias” mean?
How can receiver avoid bias ‘about the speaker’ and bias ‘about the message’.
In the absence of avoiding the receiver bias, how the mediator would not be demonstrating “ empathy with neutrality”.
Note: (This exercise is best suited for advance training for mediators who have done at least fifty mediations).
“He who can listen to the music in the midst of noise can achieve great things.” -Vikram Srabhai
(All copyrights reserved by the author S.Susheela)
Training of Trainers in Mediation 