Power and Conflict 1

Power and Conflict Final Assignment

Felipe Balderas

Communication 1080-401

Salt Lake City Community College

Power and Conflict 2

Overview

Power plays an important role in conflict. By knowing how power operates in conflict,

the easier it is to be taken seriously and prevent being mistreated. Power in conflict is one of the

main considerations that need to be thought about before diving into any conflict. Power

according to the Webster dictionary is the ability to make others do what you want to them do.

Power can be seen in all aspects of life from personal relationships family, and the workplace.

When dealing with group number of people you often have power even if you sometimes dont

realize you do (Hocker). Power can mean different things based on the situation and values of

the person. In the professional arena having power usually means a higher status among

coworkers. In the civic arena power means having a community make choices and take actions

that you want. The way that power is enforced can be flexible like in an informal group or power

can be unyielding like in a dictatorship. While many people do not have equal amounts of power,

individuals can accumulate and create more for themselves and others. By understanding how

power operates and who is in control of it, the better we can harness conflict in a positive way.

Theory/Concept.
When conflict arises, power is usually a compounding aspect of the interaction. Power

tends to fall into three camps. Power is distributive Integrative, or designated (2014). Power is

also associated with social norms or what other people think is acceptable. These social norms

dont have a centralized machinery of government they operate on. It relies on a softer world

dealing with peer to peer relations. While Power can certainly make people change behavior it is

not he only force driving conflict. Ideas individually, can generate boundless amounts of power

if it motivates people to change there thinking and actions. By asserting legitimacy like in the
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Arab spring (PSYCH), Legitimacy can be achieved by having a massive amount of people

expressing a collective interest.

One side effect of power is that is usually accumulates or reduces in a interaction.

Stewart explains that Power dynamics are fluid and changing dependent on the specific

situation (2012). It flows like a current through everyday life, politics is the work of harnessing

the flow. A common form of power that can be seen, manifests as physical force. Stewart

explains that Designated power gives power to a certain relationship rather than power being

held by individuals or even teams (2012). This a primal control of force an example can be

police and military action This is the use of law used to compel people to do certain things. In a

democracy for the people theoretically give government its power through elections. In a

dictatorship state power emerges from the threat of force and authority of the government.

Analysis

Based on my power style, I tend to be assertive most of the time. While Im more likely

to accommodate myself and others views when in a conflict. Im less likely to assert myself to

get the other person to adopt my own views and objectives. In a stressful decision, based

environment, the optimal stance would be to assert my own needs while also accommodate with

the views and needs of others. I think having a balanced power approach is the best option for

me. At my second job whenever I entered a new group at work I would try to provide my

coworkers with what they needed first and then after a relationship formed I would then ask for

what I needed. I would show everyone that I was a team player and that they could rely on me to

get work done. My view was that everyone who was there before me had power over me.

However, when there was an important point or idea I needed to get across I would become more

assertive. I would clearly define my position and explain why my idea should be implemented.
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I came to use this balanced approach because I experimented with being fully

accommodating in every situation with my first job. This fully accommodating power

relationship didnt work out, because I never contributed my own ideas and would be left out of

group rewards because I never spoke up for myself. These two Job experiences convinced me

that I should use the advantages that both assertive and accommodating mind sets offer getting

what I want and helping other people acquire their goals.

Reflection.
Power is an overarching element of any interaction. My experiences have helped me develop my

own way to engage in communication. I consider the other persons status and power when

engaging in an argument or conflict. While certain high stakes conflicts require this approach, I

choose to engage smaller type conflicts in a similar way. I use this mentality of dominating

groups because it enabled the quick conclusion of the conflict. I recognize that minimizing and

denying conflict may be negative, because it dehumanizes the other person, but this strategy

works well for me. This might be because people usually want to dominate interactions, those

who have power often take control, developing rules. Stewart explains that dominant groups

often successfully suppress conflictkeep it hidden unobserved and unthreatening (2012) by

suppressing conflict, power is controlled or concentrated. Power dynamics are fluid and they

change often on the specific situation. While power is a product of a social relationship between

individuals it is determined by the characteristics of the situation rather than individuals

involved. I believe that each person in a conflict has some degree of power though one party may

have more compared to the other.

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References

Hocker. J. L., & Wilmot, W. W. (2014). Interpersonal conflict. New York, NY:

McGraw-Hill Education.

PSYCH 424 blog. (n.d.). Retrieved December 7, 2017, from

https://sites.psu.edu/aspsy/2017/02/23/organizational-power-and-conflict/

Stewart, J. R. (2012). Brides Not Walls: a Book about Interpersonal Communication.

New York: McGraw-Hill.