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Recent studies have come to life as to the role race, gender and class of the mediator plays in mediation. Does race play any discernible role in mediation compared to gender or socioeconomic class? Recent studies show that race plays no discernible role in mediation compared to gender and gender does not matter as much as socioeconomic class. Race has become less discernable because recent political events have raised racial biases and stereotypes to our conscious levels and we no longer operate on autopilot when it comes to biases.

Professor Phyllis E. Bernard, director of the Center on Alternative Dispute Resolution at Oklahoma City University School of Law, has concluded in her research that race plays no discernible role in mediation. In so far as race matters, race probably does not matter as much as gender; and probably gender does not matter as much as socioeconomic class. In her study, mediations involving minorities reported that race, ethnicity, or national origin played no discernible role in the mediation. Many may be surprised by her research because in the United States issues involving race, ethnicity and national original often lead to volatile responses. She states that a number of interpretations could explain this fact. Conceivably, the United States may be evolving into a truly color-blind society where the mediator and parties do not notice or have a predetermined opinion about color. At a conscious level the participants opted to make color a secondary consideration. Equally as likely, the mediator steered the parties in a neutral direction or race or ethnicity drifted into the background because of the mediator’s style of neutrality and respect.

Another reason that she alludes to but does not raise is the conscious v. the subconscious level of biases. Extensive research has been conducted on biases. Researchers found that we have biases at a subconscious level. We obtain biases and stereotypes from our surroundings, family, friends,...