What Is Narrative Practice in Mediation? How Storytelling Strengthens Workplace Conflict Resolution
- Shiv Martin
- Sep 21
- 4 min read
Workplace conflict resolution training and mediation services that use narrative practice to help leaders, HR, and complaints teams build trust, resilience, and collaboration.
Have you ever sat in a mediation and sensed there was more beneath the surface? Behind frustration or silence, a deeper workplace narrative may be shaping how people show up.
Conflict is often the collision of clashing stories - which is why narrative practice offers so much to mediators, HR professionals, and complaints teams.
Why Stories Matter in Conflict Resolution
In workplace conflict, facts often take a back seat. What rises instead are the stories people carry - about themselves, their colleagues, or the organisation.
Narrative practice, developed by Michael White and David Epston, is grounded in one simple idea:
This approach invites people to separate themselves from the conflict and reconnect with values, identity, and agency.
This blog explores how we can use storytelling to move people from stuck perspectives to stories of strength, agency, and possibility.
Understanding Narrative Practice
This deceptively simple idea: “People are not the problem. The problem is the problem.” is at the core of narrative practice.
In conflict, people often feel defined by their pain or patterns:
“I’m the difficult one.”
“They’re always undermining me.”
“This workplace just doesn’t value me.”
Narrative conflict resolution invites us to separate the person from the problem, so they can reconnect with their values, identity, and purpose.
When mediators hear entrenched views or rigid positions, narrative practice encourages us to ask:
What story is this person living right now? And what story might they prefer to live?
Deconstructing the Dominant Workplace Story
In mediation, we often come across dominant workplace narratives - unhelpful stories people have absorbed about themselves, their teams, or organisational culture.
For example:
“I never speak up because it’s pointless. Management never listens.”
This isn’t just resistance. It’s a story rooted in powerlessness or exclusion.
Narrative practice helps us gently deconstruct these assumptions
“Has there ever been a time when you did feel heard? What helped that happen?”
These questions uncover counter-narratives, moments that contradict the stuck storyline. And once people reconnect with these alternative stories, change becomes possible.
Externalising the Problem
Here’s where narrative mediation shines: externalisation. Rather than labelling someone “difficult,” we might explore:
“How is stress showing up between you both?”
Instead of saying “You’re reactive,” we ask:
“Is this a pattern of communication that’s breaking down trust?”
This subtle shift:
Reduces defensiveness
Encourages shared responsibility
Makes the problem something they can tackle together, not against each other
Re-authoring Towards a Preferred Story
Narrative practice ultimately helps people re-author their stories - moving toward a preferred future.
As mediators, we might ask:
“What kind of working relationship do you want from here?”
“If your team could look back on this in a year and feel proud, what would be different?”
“What strengths have you shown, even in the middle of all this?”
These are not fluffy questions. They’re powerful invitations to shift perspective and build a more hopeful narrative grounded in personal agency.
Putting Narrative Practice into Action
You don’t have to be a narrative therapist to use these tools. Here are some practical ways to apply narrative thinking in your next workplace mediation:
Listen for limiting stories: What narratives are shaping how people see themselves or each other?
Ask about exceptions: When have things gone better? What made that possible?
Externalise the problem: Separate people from behaviours or patterns.
Name values and strengths: What matters to each person? Where have they shown resilience?
Invite re-authoring: Help parties co-create a new chapter they both want to live in.
Why Narrative Practice Matters Now
Hybrid work, burnout, restructures, and shifting culture mean workplace stories are more complex than ever.
Narrative practice provides a lens and language for mediators and leaders to:
Respect each person’s identity
Reframe entrenched positions
Build trust and collaboration
Ever sense there's a deeper story beneath workplace conflicts?
In my experience supporting teams through disputes, I've discovered that behind every frustration lies a narrative shaping how people show up. When we listen for these stories - not just facts - we unlock genuine understanding.
Narrative practice asks: "What story would you prefer to live?" This shifts us from blame to meaning, creating space for people to reconnect with their values and move toward collaboration.
Ready to Add Narrative Skills to Your Mediation Toolkit?
If you’re a workplace leader, mediator, or HR professional looking to build deeper emotional and conversational intelligence into your conflict response, I run:
Narrative-informed mediation skills workshops
Conflict coaching for leaders and complaints teams
Practical webinars on reframing workplace conflict through storytelling
👉 Book a FREE confidential call or explore upcoming training
❓ Frequently Asked Questions
1. What is narrative practice in mediation?
Narrative practice is a way of helping people separate themselves from the conflict story and re-author a future based on their values and strengths.
2. How is narrative mediation different from traditional mediation?
While traditional mediation focuses on problem-solving, narrative mediation also explores meaning, language, and identity - unlocking deeper shifts in perception.
3. Can narrative practice be used in workplace conflict?
Yes, it’s especially useful when workplace disputes are entangled with identity, trust breakdowns, or long-term frustration.
4. Do you need to be a therapist to use narrative ideas?
Not at all. Anyone supporting conflict, especially HR professionals or complaints staff, can use simple narrative tools to reframe and rebuild trust.
5. What kinds of outcomes does narrative mediation support? It helps people move from stuck conflict cycles to more empowered, values-driven decisions and longer-term collaboration.
Free Resource: DIY Facilitated Conversations
If you’d like to see how facilitated conversations could help your workplace, I’ve created a free resource: DIY Facilitated Conversations.
This guide outlines the key steps of running a structured conversation, with prompts and tips you can use straight away.
Shiv Martin is a nationally accredited mediator, practicing solicitor, conciliator, decision-maker, and certified vocational trainer. With extensive experience in complex dispute resolution, stakeholder engagement, and team building across business, community, and governmental sectors, Shiv brings over a decade of unique and diverse expertise in Law, Management, Vocational Education, and Mediation.
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