Application of the Concept of Professional Role in Research on the Work of Court Mediators

Abstract

This article is focused on the issue of the formation of the professional role of the court mediator in the context of the theory of professional role and the impact of social and market circumstances that determine changes in the profession and research trends. Thus, the purpose is to present the concept of the socio-professional role of the mediator in the context of the work performed. The starting point is the question: to what extent the classical theory of the socio-professional role makes it possible to develop a concept of the mediator’s role that can be used in sociological research in modern times. The fi rst stage of the tasks undertaken is an analysis of the theoretical construct of the socio-professional role based on the literature. Subsequent stages include a review of approaches to the mediator profession and approaches found in social research. This made it possible to introduce the concept of this profession in a functional perspective, including the professional basis and elements that, along with contemporary changes in the ways of understanding the concept of “profession”, highlight those aspects of the professional role of the mediator that indicate its dynamic recognition. Against this background, the author’s research design and selected excerpts from the results of the study (2023, survey, 342 respondents) are presented. As a result, it was found that the application of the theory of professional role on the example of the emerging profession of court mediator proves that this role is not static, so the concepts should take into account the issues of adaptation to the conditions of the socio-professional environment.