Empathy, neutrality and emotional intelligence: a balancing act for the emotional Einstein

Emotions play a central role in mediation as they help to define the scope and direction of a conflict. When a party to mediation expresses (and hence entrusts) their emotions to those present in a mediation, a mediator must do more than simply listen - they must attend to these emotions. Mediator empathy is an essential skill for communicating to a party that their feelings have been heard and understood, but it can lead mediators into trouble. Whilst there might exist a theoretical divide between the notions of empathy and sympathy, the very best characteristics of mediators (caring and compassionate nature) may see empathy and sympathy merge - resulting in challenges to mediator neutrality. This article first outlines the semantic difference between empathy and sympathy and the role that intrapsychic conflict can play in the convergence of these behavioural phenomena. It then defines emotional intelligence in the context of a mediation, suggesting that only the most emotionally intelligent mediators are able to emotionally connect with the parties, but maintain an impression of impartiality – the quality of remaining ‘attached yet detached’ to the process. It is argued that these emotionally intelligent mediators have the common qualities of strong self-awareness and emotional self-regulation.

Tax concessions for charities : competitive neutrality, the tax base and "public goods" choice

It is argued that concerns arise about the integrity and fairness of the taxation regime where charitable organizations, which avail themselves of the tax exemption status while undertaking commercial activities, compete directly with the for-profit sector. The appropriateness of the tax concessions granted to charitable organizations is considered in respect of income derived from commercial activities. It is principally argued that the traditional line of reasoning for imposing limitations on tax concessions focuses on an incorrect underlying inquiry. Traditionally, it is argued that limitations should be imposed because of unfair competition, lack of competitive neutrality, or an arbitrary decision relating to a lack of deserving. However, it is argued that a more appropriate question from which to base any limitations is one which considers the value attached to the integrity of the taxation regime as a whole, and the tax base specifically compared to the public good of charities. When the correct underlying question is asked, sound taxation policy ensues, as a less arbitrary approach may be adopted to limit the scope of tax concessions available to charitable organizations.

Small State Cultures of Consensus : State Traditions and Consensus-Seeking in the Neo-Corporatist and Neutrality Policies in Post-1945 Austria and Finland

Austria and Finland are persistently referred to as the “success stories” of post-1945 European history. Notwithstanding their different points of departure, in the course of the Cold War both countries portrayed themselves as small and neutral border-states in the world dictated by superpower politics. By the 1970s, both countries frequently ranked at the top end in various international classifications regarding economic development and well-being in society. This trend continues today. The study takes under scrutiny the concept of consensus which figures centrally in the two national narratives of post-1945 success. Given that the two domestic contexts as such only share few direct links with one another and are more obviously different than similar in terms of their geographical location, historical experiences and politico-cultural traditions, the analogies and variations in the anatomies of the post-1945 “cultures of consensus” provide an interesting topic for a historical comparative and cross-national examination. The main research question concerns the identification and analysis of the conceptual and procedural convergence points of the concepts of the state and consensus. The thesis is divided into six main chapters. After the introduction, the second chapter presents the theoretical framework in more detail by focusing on the key concepts of the study – the state and consensus. Chapter two also introduces the comparative historical and cross-national research angles. Chapter three grounds the key concepts of the state and consensus in the historical contexts of Austria and Finland by discussing the state, the nation and democracy in a longer term comparative perspective. The fourth and fifth chapter present case studies on the two policy fields, the “pillars”, upon which the post-1945 Austrian and Finnish cultures of consensus are argued to have rested. Chapter four deals with neo-corporatist features in the economic policy making and chapter five discusses the building up of domestic consensus regarding the key concepts of neutrality policies in the 1950s and 1960s. The study concludes that it was not consensus as such but the strikingly intense preoccupation with the theme of domestic consensus that cross-cut, in a curiously analogous manner, the policy-making processes studied. The main challenge for the post-1945 architects of Austrian and Finnish cultures of consensus was to find strategies and concepts for consensus-building which would be compatible with the principles of democracy. Discussed at the level of procedures, the most important finding of the study concerns the triangular mechanism of coordination, consultation and cooperation that set into motion and facilitated a new type of search for consensus in both post-war societies. In this triangle, the agency of the state was central, though in varying ways. The new conceptions concerning a small state’s position in the Cold War world also prompted cross-nationally perceivable willingness to reconsider inherited concepts and procedures of the state and the nation. At the same time, the ways of understanding the role of the state and its relation to society remained profoundly different in Austria and Finland and this basic difference was in many ways reflected in the concepts and procedures deployed in the search for consensus and management of domestic conflicts. For more detailed information, please consult the author.

Net neutrality in Australia: The debate continues, but no policy in sight

The ways in which Internet traffic is managed have direct consequences on Internet users’ rights as well as on their capability to compete on a level playing field. Network neutrality mandates to treat Internet traffic in a non-discriminatory fashion in order to maximise end users’ freedom and safeguard an open Internet.

Professional non-neutrality: criticising the third party in psychotherapy

Using audio-recorded data from cognitive-constructivist psychotherapy, the article shows a particular institutional context in which successful professional action does not adhere to the pattern of affective neutrality which Parsons saw as an inherent component of medicine and psychotherapy. In our data, the professional’s non-neutrality functions as a tool for achieving institutional goals. The analysis focuses on the psychotherapist’s actions that convey a critical stance towards a third party with whom the patient has experienced problems. The data analysis revealed two practices of this kind of critique: (1) the therapist can confirm the critique that the patient has expressed or (2) return to the critique from which the patient has focused away. These actions are shown to build grounds for the therapist’s further actions that challenge the patient’s dysfunctional beliefs. The article suggests that in the case of psychotherapy, actions that as such might be seen as apparent lapses from the neutral professional role can in their specific context perform the task of the institution at hand.

Neutrality tests using DNA polymorphism from multiple samples

The polymorphism of a gene or a locus is studied with increasing frequency by multiple laboratories or the same group at different times. Such practice results in polymorphism being revealed by different samples at different regions of the locus. Tests of neutrality have been widely conducted for polymorphism data but commonly used statistical tests cannot be applied directly to such data. This article provides a procedure to conduct a neutrality test and details are given for two commonly used tests. Applying the two new tests to the chemokine-receptor gene (CCR5) in humans, we found that the hypothesis that all mutations are selectively neutral cannot explain the observed pattern of DNA polymorphism.

Legitimacy Through Neutrality: Probation and Conflict in Northern Ireland

The conflict in Northern Ireland known as the Troubles presented numerous challenges for the administration of traditional forms of criminal justice and has led to a variety of adaptations that have been widely discussed in the literature in criminology and transitional justice. The role of Northern Ireland's probation service is often forgotten or ignored in such analyses. This brief article is intended to begin to fill this gap by exploring how the Troubles impacted on probation practice during the Conflict and beyond. In particular, we argue that the 'neutrality stance' taken by probation in the mid-1970s, when officers decided to cease mandated work with individuals charged with 'politically-motivated' offences, has had a lasting impact on the identity and role of probation in the region. The deep immersion into, and engagement with, marginalised communities during this time, facilitated by this neutrality stance, has overlooked implications for probation practice more widely in the United Kingdom and abroad.

What Did the Lawyers Do During the 'War' ? Neutrality, Conflcit and the Culture of Quietism

Using Northern Ireland as a case study, this paper explores how lawyers responded to the challenges of entrenched discrimination, sustained political violence and an emerging peace process. Drawing upon the literature of the sociology of lawyering, it examines whether lawyers can or should be more than ‘paid technicians’ in such circumstances. It focuses in particular upon a number of ‘critical junctures’ in the legal history of the jurisdiction and uncouples key elements of the local legal culture which contributed to an ethos of quietism. The paper argues that the version of legal professionalism that emerged in Northern Ireland was contingent and socially constructed and, with notable exceptions, obfuscated a collective failure of moral courage. It concludes that facing the truth concerning past silence is fundamental to a properly embedded rule of law and a more grounded notion of what it means to be a lawyer in a conflict.

Like a rolling stone: the mobility of maerl (Corallinaceae) and the neutrality of the associated assemblages

Beds of nonattached coralline algae (maerl or rhodoliths) are widespread and considered relatively species rich. This habitat is generally found in areas where there is chronic physical disturbance such that maerl thalli are frequently moved. Little is known, however, about how natural disturbance regimes affect the species associated with maerl. This study compared the richness, animal abundance, and algal biomass of maerl-associated species over a two-year period in a wave-disturbed bed and a sheltered maerl bed. Changes in associated species over time were assessed for departures from a neutral model in which the dissimilarity between samples reflects random sampling from a common species pool. Algal biomass and species richness at the wave-exposed site and on stabilized maerl at the sheltered site were reduced at times of higher wind speeds. The changes in species richness were not distinguishable from a neutral model, implying that algal species were added at random to the assemblage as the level of disturbance lessened. Results for animal species were more mixed. Although mobile species were less abundant during windy periods at the exposed site, both neutral and non-neutral patterns were evident in the assemblages. Artificial stabilization of maerl had inconsistent effects on the richness of animals but always resulted in more attached algal species. While the results show that the response of a community to disturbance can be neutral, the domain of neutral changes in communities may be relatively small. Alongside non-neutral responses to natural disturbance, artificial stabilization always resulted in an assemblage that was more distinct than would be expected under random sampling from a common pool. Community responses to stabilization treatments did not consistently follow the predictions of the dynamic equilibrium model, the intermediate disturbance model, or a facilitation model. These inconsistencies may reflect site-specific variation in both the disturbance regime and the adjacent habitats that provide source populations for many of the species found associated with maerl.