Studies have reported that mediation has higher settlement rates than litigation. The quality of these agreements as experienced by the parties as well as the processes that contribute to this subjective experience remains underexamined, however. In a large, representative, and multidisciplinary study of divorcing couples, we studied the relationship between the practices of lawyers and mediators and the quality of agreements experienced by their clients. We used multiple regression analysis to reveal that divorce mediation is significantly more likely than litigation to produce high‐quality divorce settlements. Furthermore, we found that high‐quality divorce agreements were more likely to occur when mediators and lawyers were perceived to have worked facilitatively. In addition, we found that pre‐divorce conflict levels were inversely correlated with the quality of agreements. Which party initiated the divorce, the parties' gender, and the type of legal divorce did not explain variances in the quality of the agreements. In this article, we also discuss the training and practice implications of our findings.

Addressing calls for more mediation process research, this qualitative study explored which contradictory tensions are in play in a helpful working relationship between mediators and their clients. Data were collected in semistructured interviews with divorce mediators ( n = 12). Relational dialectical analysis detailed how divorce mediators varied practice styles along the central opposing pulls of client self-determination and professional control, neutrality and engagement, and effi ciency and exploration. Th e fi ndings counterbalance traditional hallmarks of mediation and highlight a range of dynamic truths in which mediators operate. Methodological limitations and implications for research and practice are discussed.

Expanding on current advancements in divorce and dispute resolution research, an integrative, and process-oriented model is presented. The primary purpose is to investigate how pre-trajectory, trajectory, and arrangement factors are related to post-divorce personal wellbeing. To this end, questionnaire-data were collected in two sessions from a representative sample of Flemish divorcing persons (n=469 and n=117). A series of multiple regression analyses demonstrated that post-divorce wellbeing was directly related to divorce trajectory characteristics. Facilitative problem solving behaviors of the intervening professional and his or her Rogerian personal qualities contributed significantly to the personal well-being of divorced people. In addition, post-divorce wellbeing was positively influenced by the quality of the divorce arrangements. The impartiality of the professional, the option to divorce through mediation or litigation, with or without mutual consent, the initiator-status, and pre-divorce conflict levels all didn"t produce significant effects. The limitations and practical implications for divorce practice are discussed.

In contrast to mediation outcome studies, there is a lack of research