THE ROLE OF COMMUNICATIVE COMPETENCE IN THE PROFESSIONAL ACTIVITY OF A MEDIATOR

Abstract

The paper provides a theoretical substantiation of the role of communicative competence in the professional activity of a mediator. The relevance of the study is determined by the growing number of conflict situations and the need to apply constructive methods of their resolution, among which mediation occupies an important place. It has been established that the effectiveness of the mediation process largely depends on the mediator’s professional competence, particularly on their ability to ensure productive interaction between the parties to a conflict. The article substantiates a managerial approach to the development of a mediator’s communicative competence as a component of their professional readiness. The generalization of domestic and international approaches made it possible to identify a set of interrelated skills required to organize productive interaction between the parties to a conflict: listening, questioning, paraphrasing, reframing, emotional self-regulation, neutral verbal and non-verbal behaviour, and intercultural sensitivity. It is demonstrated that the effectiveness of mediator training depends on the systematic, sustained, and repetitive practical application of communicative actions, accompanied by regular feedback and progress assessment. In this context, the development of communicative competence is proposed to be considered as an object of professional learning management and human capital development. The purpose of the article is to provide a theoretical substantiation of the mediator’s communicative competence, to systematize its structural components, and to determine managerial approaches to its development within the system of professional training. The research methodology comprised the methods of analysis and synthesis, comparison, systematization and generalization, as well as an inductive-deductive approach. The practical significance of the obtained results lies in the possibility of their application in designing basic training and advanced professional development programmes for mediators, developing competency profiles, assessment criteria, and training modules. A promising area for further development is the creation of a comprehensive communication simulator that would integrate international mediation standards, adapted practices for training specialists in crisis and contact services, scenario-based simulations, and expert feedback to enable repeated practice of professional communication skills. Further research should focus on testing such a model and empirically evaluating its effectiveness.