Improving third-party decisions at choice points: A Cyprus case study

Third parties are often required to make process decisions under considerable psychological pressure, within the stressful view of interested parties, often with high stakes and inadequate information, on very short notice, and without an opportunity for extended research or even much reflection. Therefore, a valuable goal in preparing for intervention is to develop the ability to spot patterns or cues in the context of the dispute that can immediately suggest techniques or process options that could be successful. This essay focuses on conditions at important choice points in an intervention and the third-party decisions made in response. It discusses how third parties make decisions on process issues and suggests ways to learn how to make better decisions. Next, it applies this decision framework to an actual intervention, using an effort by a co-author to build interaction between the Greek and Turkish communities in Cyprus during the mid-1990s. Finally, the authors jointly evaluate the Cyprus experience to capture lessons learned for improving third-party conflict resolution practice.