conflict. Traditional view. It is a belief that all conflict is harmful or bad and must be avoided. Conflict is viewed negatively. Conflict is seen as dysfunctional outcome resulting from poor communication, a lack of openness and trust between people and failure of manage to be responsive to the need sand aspirations of their employees. Identify the causes of conflict and correct these malfunctioning in order to improve group and organizational performance. But in reality it is not always possible to avoid or ignore all conflicts. Human relations View. It is a belief that conflict is a natural and inevitable outcome in any group. Since conflict is inevitable, it is wise to accept it. It cannot be eliminated. Conflict benefit a groups performance. Interactionsit view. It is a belief that conflict is a positive force in a group. It is absolutely necessary for a group to perform effectively. This approach encourages conflict on the ground that a harmonious, peaceful and tranquil and cooperative group is prone to static, apathetic and non-responsive to the needs for change and innovation. Encourage group leaders to maintain an ongoing minimum level of conflict- enough to keep the group viable, self-critical and creative.
Functional Versus Dysfunctional conflict. It is a conflict that supports the goals of the group and improves its performance. It is constructive form of conflict. Dysfunctional conflict, on the other hand, hinders group performance. It is destructive from of conflict.
Task conflict. It is a conflict over content and goals of the work. Relationship conflict. It focuses son interpersonal relationships. Process conflict. It relates to how the works get done. Relationship conflicts are almost always dysfunctional. Friction and interpersonal hostility inherent in relationship conflict increase personality clashes ad decreases mutual understanding which hinder the competition of organizational tasks. Low level of process conflict and low level of task conflict are functional. Levels of conflict Conflicts may occur within a person, between persons, or groups and across organizations as they compete. Intrapersonal conflict. It is also called intrapsychic conflict. It may occur within a person when he plays two roles which are inconsistent. It occurs when an organizational member is required to do certain tasks and roles that do not match his expertise, interest, goals and values. Example: you may be a manager of a team responsible for protecting and enlarging its resources and as a member of a the executive staff charged with the task of reducing operating costs. Interpersonal conflict or dyadic conflict. This may occur at different levels-vertical and horizontal. Interpersonal conflicts are a serious problem to many people because they deeply affect a persons emotion. There is a need to protect ones self image and self- esteem from damage by others. When self concept is threatened, serious upset occurs and relationships deteriorate. There are many reasons responsible for interpersonal conflict. Temperaments of two persons may be incompatible. Personalities clash. Failure of communication, differences in perception. Intragroup conflict This is also known as intradepartmnetal conflict. It refers to conflict among members of a group or between two or more sub-groups within a group in connection with its goals, tasks, procedures and so on.
Intergroup conflict or intraorganizational conflict. Inter-group conflicts between different departments also cause problems. Each group tries to undermine the other, gain power and improve its image. Main causes are: Different viewpoints, Group loyalties, competition for resources. Limited resources. Example: product department may want new and more efficient machinery, while at the same time, sales department wants to expand its sale force, but there are only enough resources to supply the needs of one group.
Conclusion. Some conflict can be constructive and this is certainly true at the intergroup level. Conflicts may provide a clue that a critical problem between two departments needs to be resolved. People are stimulated to search for improved approaches that lead to better results. It energizes them to be more creative a d to experiment with new ideas. Unless issues are brought into the open, they cannot be fully understood or explored. Once the conflict is resolved, the individuals may be more committed to the outcome through their involvement in solving it. Managerial challenge is to keep conflict at a moderate level, where it is most likely to stimulate creative thoughts but not interfere with performance. Conflict should not become so intense that individual parties either hide it or escalate it to destructive levels. Conflict behavior Conflict becomes visible through behaviors. Behaviors includes statements, actins, and reactions made by the conflicting parties. Behaviors are overt. Through behaviors people implement their intentions.
- Conflict behaviors are: Overt efforts to destroy the other party. Aggressive physical attacks. Threats and ultimatums, Assertive verbal attacks. Overt questioning or challenging others, Minor agreement or misunderstandings. Strikes, riots and war are the examples of extreme behavior. Outcomes of conflict Conflict may produce four distinct outcomes, depending on the approaches taken by the people involved. Lose-lose outcome. It is a situation in which a conflict deteriorates to the point at both parties are worse off than they were before. As a manager, you fire a person who only knows the secret formula for the organizations most successful product. Lose-win. It is a situation in which one person is defeated while the other person is victorious. Win-lose situation. It is a reverse situation. I win and you lose. Win-win outcome. It is a situation in which both parties to conflict perceive tat they are in a better position than they were before the conflict began. This is the preferred outcome to try to achieve in ongoing relationships such as with suppliers, customers, and employees. Win-win outcome. It is a situation in which both parties to conflict perceive tat they are in a better position than they were before the conflict began. This is the preferred outcome to try to achieve in ongoing relationships such as with suppliers, customers, and employees.
The Ultimate Guide On Developing Conflict Resolution Techniques For Workplace Conflicts - How To Develop Workplace Positivity, Morale and Effective Communications