Understanding Facilitative and Evaluative Mediation: How Experienced Mediators Really Practice

A professional female mediator speaks with two parties seated across a conference table in a professional office setting.

For years, mediation theory has framed facilitative and evaluative mediation approaches as distinct, and often opposing, models. Mediation training programs, textbooks, and mediator biographies frequently present these approaches as choices, as though mediators must align themselves with one camp or the other. Facilitative and transformative mediation are often discussed in the context of distinct styles, […]