Alternative Dispute Resolution ADR FAQ - Frequently Asked Questions:

What is difference between Alternative Dispute Resolution And Conflict Resolution

Unfortunately these terms are used interchangeably andsometimes used inappropriately. To help clarify their use, I suggest the following distinction.

Alternative Dispute Resolution is used to differentiate between court room litigation from non-court dispute resolution. Hence, the word ‘alternative’ is placed before the words ‘dispute resolution’. In modern times, it has become standard to settle disputes in court and the saying ‘see you in court’ has become a popular cliché. When we go to court the outcome is subject to variables out of our control. The empowerment trend ‘taking back the power from the court into the hands of the people’ has given re-birth to the term ‘alternative dispute resolution’. I say ‘re-birth’ because in historical time before the advent of ‘court room litigation’, disputes were usually resolved by the parties themselves without the intervention of a decision-maker.

The term ‘Conflict Resolution’ is becoming more associated with globalization, urbanization, and community/cultural diversity than between two individuals. Two individuals generally have a resolvable dispute, not a conflict. As discussed above, conflicts are issue clashes between two opposing groups or individuals. Two people with a disagreement seldom have a conflict unless it involves a serious or life-threatening issue that is completely non-negotiable. Conflicts normally are group/community-related where societal pressure and principles are drawn an ‘initial’ disagreement. Have you ever had the experience of not liking something but not knowing really why? Perhaps it is based on hearsay or inherited perceived notions. This is a good example of how societal pressure and principles work. In a way we become captive and feel it is our nature without directly experiencing the ‘initial’ disagreement. This is conflict.

What is difference between Alternative Dispute Resolution And Conflict Resolution


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