Review: Oliver Märker & Matthias Trénel (Eds.) (2003). Online-Mediation. Neue Medien in der Konfliktvermittlung – mit Beispielen aus Politik und Wirtschaft [Online-Mediation. New Media in Conflict Resolution—with Examples from Politics and Industry]

Online-Mediation deals with conflict resolution methods that are carried out partially or completely online. The book analyses online mediation as a socio-technical system through the means of the computer-based technological platform deeply interwoven with conflict-related social communication. The first part of the book discusses the multiple options and restrictions of online communication in moderation and mediation processes. For example, one advantage of online mediation is that geographically separated parties (e.g. in e-commerce settings) can resolve conflicts at comparatively low cost. The second part of the book reports online mediation examples from politics and industry. Although online mediation is described as a seminal method increasingly requested, several socio-technical problems need to be addressed by further research. The book provides an informative view of the subject, focusing on the German-speaking countries. Unfortunately, it lacks a systematic comparison of different online mediation tools and techniques as well as a closer look at the business models and professional issues in this new field of activity. URN: urn:nbn:de:0114-fqs04016