Assessment 1A: Analyzing ADR's Role in Major Australian Projects

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Assessment 1A: Critical Review Report
Executive summary of the report:
The following report comprises a research that aims at analysing the role of the ADR in context of large
projects in Australia. It provides an in-depth overview of a research article, wherein the research gap,
limitation, and research outcomes are discussed. In addition, the credibility of the research article is also
discussed along with a screenshot of Turnitin report. The report concluded with a self-reflection of
personal learning.
Proposed research topic
Understanding the Role of Alternative Dispute Resolution in the context of large projects in Australia
Summary of the main identified scholarly article relevant to the topic:
[1] Article citation
Forsyth, A., 2012. Workplace conflict resolution in Australia: the dominance of the public dispute
resolution framework and the limited role of ADR. The International Journal of Human Resource
Management, 23(3), pp.476–494.
A. Provide the annotation
[2] The article (Forsyth, 2012) talks about the ways to resolve workplace disputes in Australia through
public dispute resolution and ADR. It also talks about the loopholes in ADR. [3] The research has been
conducted based on the review of current and past literature articles and books that have covered the
Fair Work System and role of ADR in establishing a healthy workplace environment by resolving disputes
among employees working on large project [4] The article (Forsyth, 2012) outlined the role of ADR
system in resolving workplace disputes. On the basis of the literature review, the author has tried to
analyze whether ADR is an effective tool under the Fair Work Act. In addition to this, the paper has
highlighted a very common concern regarding the ADR method that it favors the more powerful party. By
referring to various sections and subsections given in different work-related legislation have been
discussed. In addition to this, paper also consists of some international measures for resolving the
workplace disputes while different teams working on a project. [5]This paper (Forsyth, 2012) is
significant for this assessment because it highlights the role for ADR as a crucial technique to resolve the
workplace disputes. Since the theme selected for this assessment is outlining the large projects in
Australia, it is important to select a paper that covers the workplace and other types of disputes in a
broader context. On a large projects, there are various contractors, sub-contractors, clients, and
investors that might have conflicting views. This might create a dispute among two or more of them. This
paper shows how ADR can be a beneficial tool in such cases. In addition to this, the author has also
covered the loopholes and downsides of this method. In total, it is a balanced article covering both sides
of ADR. [6] A major limitation of the study (Forsyth, 2012) is that it is purely based on the literature
review of other sources that might not be correct and even if they are legit, the chances of biases might be
there. In addition to this, the author talked about the theoretical knowledge but he has shared a few
examples only. [7] The research (Forsyth, 2012) determined a number of issues that might make ADR
ineffective. Furthermore, it advocates the use of ADR in even small disputes in the workplace. [8] This
article assesses various legal and institutional framework to resolve the workplace conflict in Australian
organization. I learned about the ADR technique, its usage, significance, and much more from the
research.

B. Evaluate the credibility of the article
The characteristics of The International Journal of Human Resource Management are given below.
 The ISSN(Print) : 2249-6874
 ISSN(Online) : 2249-7986
 Impact Factor(JCC) : 7.2092
 NAAS Rating : 3.38
 IBI Factor : 3.2
It does not charge any fees from the authors.
C. Explain how did you locate and download the article
The keywords used to search this article are
 ADR;
 Workplace conflict resolution in Australia
 project dispute resolution agencies
 workplace dispute resolution
Summary of a relevant article cited by the main article
Dolder, C., 2004. The contribution of mediation to workplace justice. Industrial Law Journal, 33(4),
pp.320-342.
A. Evaluate the credibility of the article
The following paper has been cited by 43 research articles and the journal in which it is published has an
impact factor 1.01. Hence, it is a credible source.
B. Explain how did you locate the article
Among all the sources cited by the main paper, this paper is more associated with the theme of the main
paper. Hence, I selected this paper.
C. Provide the brief annotation
In this paper, the main concept highlighted was the reluctance that organisations show towards using
alternative dispute resolution for settling disputes between two business entities or different parties within
a single entity. The author also mentioned that economic and political factors also affect the use of ADR
in resolving government-related disputes. The paper is based on secondary research. However, in
majority of the secondary data collection process, the real-world examples have been referred.
Summary of a relevant article citing the main article
McKenzie, D. M. 2015. The role of mediation in resolving workplace relationship conflict. International
Journal of Law and Psychiatry, 39, pp. 52–59.
A. Evaluate the credibility of the article
The paper has been cited in five other research articles and it got published in the International
Journal of Law and Psychiatry that has impact factor of 1.546.
B. Explain how did you locate the article
Locating this article was not tough. I copied the complete citation and searched it on Google. I got the
related papers along with the original paper.
C. Provide the brief annotation

The paper assessed various factors that might cause disputes between different parties working on a
common project. These factors result in a stress, damage relationship, and affect the progress of the work.
This paper did the literature analysis of various articles to develop an argument on role of ADR technique
like mediation in resolving disputes. Again the only limitation is that it consider only one ADR technique
and did not talk about the downsides of the methods and failure case studies. These would have make this
paper an exception.
A preliminary research gap or statement of the research problem
Majority of the literature available are based on the secondary research analysis. A little of them have
tried to carry out primary research but their conclusion are primarily based on the literature they have
reviewed. Hence, to analyse the role of ADR and its effectiveness, one needs to come up with an effective
primary research approach.
A screenshot of Turnitin similarity report:
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A critical reflection of your learning experience
Talking about the overall learning from this assessment exercise, I learned many things and developed
analytical as well as researching skills. Prior to this assessment on ADR, I had only a little knowledge of
how disputes are resolved in business organisations. I learned about negotiation, mediation, and
arbitration and learn their merits and demerits. In addition to this, I got the knowledge of how these
methods can be brought into use. Furthermore, due to lack of researching skills, I faced some difficulties
in the very beginning. Reading a research article was something I am not very fond of. However, this
article was easy to read and understand. I have no idea about secondary research, its importance, and how
it conducted. Referring to the research articles and understanding their methodology and outcomes are
some of the crucial aspects that one has to look for. All such information I got in these four weeks and
while doing this assessment. These skills are important for me to give a head start to my career. It kept me
focused while I was going through it. Talking about my learnings in the last four weeks, the course is
helping me in honing my researching skills. The modules are designed in such a way that students can
reap the maximum benefit out of it. I am able to get into the depth of the concepts that are crucial for my
successful career. Earlier, I used to mug up. But, now I am able to understand the topic and strengthen my
base. Overall, it was a very learning experience for me and I am pretty much confident that my lecturer
would help me in my learning in case I find difficulties in any concept.