Conflict and Negotiation

• An active disagreement between people with opposing opinions or principles
• Relationship conflicts—those based on interpersonal incompatibilities, tension, and autonomy toward others—are almost always dysfunctional.
• Task conflicts— those based on disagreements about task content—can be beneficial because they may stimulate discussion, promote critical assessment of problems and options, and can lead to better team decisions.

Personal level conflicts

Interpersonal conflict

• Between 2 or more people
• Differences in views as to what should be done
• Differences in orientation to work and time in different parts of the organization

Intrapersonal conflict

• Occurs within an individual
• Threat to a person’s values (something like Cognitive Dissonance)
• Feeling of unfair treatment

Intergroup conflict

• Conflict between 2 or more groups

Intragroup conflict

• Conflict among members of a group
• Early stages of group development (storming)
• Ways of doing tasks or reaching group goals

Inter-organizational conflict

• Between 2 or more organizations
• Not competition
• Examples: Suppliers vs Distributors

Intra-organizational conflict

• Conflict that occurs within an organization
• Happens at the interfaces of the organization
• Can also occur along the vertical and horizontal dimensions of the organization
  • Vertical conflict: Between managers and subordinates
  • Horizontal conflict: Between departments and work-groups

Outcomes of conflict

Positive

1. Increased motivation and creativity
2. Healthy interactions and involvements stimulated
3. Increased understanding of others
4. People are forced to clarify their ideas more effectively.

Negative

1. Decreased productivity
2. Relevant information not being shared
3. Environmental stress
4. Decision making process disrupted
5. Poor work relationships
6. Misallocation of resources
7. Impaired organizational commitments

Conflict management styles: The Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument

Which conflict management style is best?

Use avoidance when

• Issue is trivial
• To temporarily delay to allow emotions to cool down

Use accommodation when

• Relationships are more important than the issue at hand
• Others concerns are significantly more important

Use competition when

• When quick, decisive action is vital
• When you don’t trust the opponent

Use compromise when

• To arrive at expedient solutions under time pressure
• As a backup when collaboration or competition is unsuccessful

Use collaboration

• When both parties have valuable insight to contribute
• When a long-term solution is needed
• When a positive relationship is crucial

Types of conflict resolution

1. Lose-lose methods: Compromise, avoiding

2. Win-win methods: Collaborating

3. Win-lose methods: Competing

4. Lose-win methods: Accommodating