Child-inclusive Mediation

  Child-Inclusive Mediation

Child-Inclusive Mediation is an evidence-based model centered around understanding the experience of the child to help parents focus on making decisions that deeply reflect the developmental and psychological needs of the child. It strives to support the co-parenting relationship and build a productive climate for the child’s future development and interpersonal relationships. It is often used in high conflict parenting matters where children are at risk of being “put in the middle” or are experiencing other negative impacts of parental conflict.

Child-Inclusive Mediation utilizes a specially trained Child Consultant to represent the child’s perspective in mediation while protecting them from being directly exposed to parental negotiations. The Child Consultant conducts a confidential interview with the child to create a safe opportunity to hear their voice regarding what it is like to be them, living the way they are, with their parents the way they are. Children are never asked to make decisions, identify preferences, solve adult problems, or “pick a side”. Rather, the Child Consultant becomes the safe voice of the child and focuses on what it is like to be them and what their parents can do to improve their experience. The Child Consultant seeks to understand perspectives and themes expressed by the child through specialized interview approaches. The Consultant then generates strategic feedback to share with parents about the child’s experience and needs. No specific information shared by the child is relayed to the parents without the child’s consent. The child remains in control of what specific information is relayed back to their parents. This feedback session helps to reshape the mediation agenda in high conflict situations. 

The primary goal of child-inclusive mediation is to empower children to have a voice in decisions that affect their lives, such as custody arrangements, living situations, and visitation schedules. By actively involving children in the mediation process, it promotes their sense of agency and helps parents make more informed and child-focused decisions.

Kirstina was trained as a Child Consultant for Child Inclusive Mediation by Dr. Jennifer McIntosh through Children Beyond Dispute.

Child-Focused Mediation

Child-Focused Mediation is similar to Child-Inclusive Mediation in that it focuses on helping parents understand the experiences and perspectives of their child and is conducted by a specially trained mediator. However, children do not participate in an interview with a Child Consultant. 

Research has shown that on-going parental conflict has long-standing negative implications on children’s development. Therefore, child-focused mediation slows down the mediation process in a manner that allows time to deeply discuss the individualized needs of each child and support parents in finding agreements that meet each child’s needs. It is often utilized with high conflict situations when parents need opportunities to create child-centered agreements and learn about changes in adult behaviors that are needed to improve child’s outcomes.