Learning about conflict in organizations happens when we examine organizations a

Question

Learning about conflict in organizations happens when we examine organizations and their conflicts. Getting comfortable with conflict terms and their applications is helpful when learning to be more effective when handling conflict.

Compare and contrast this case to your own workplace and how they handle conflict with clients and or customer service. Has your own workplace conducted self analysis within the organization? Is your organization collaborative or aggressive? Address concerns you have within your organization and outline why or why not to use such an approach as was outlined in this case. Demonstrate your knowledge of concepts presented so far.

Write an essay (3-5 pages) outlining your analysis.  

Explanation / Answer

Conflict refers to more than just overt behavior. Concentrating only upon its behavioral manifestation is an extremely limiting exercise. The three-dimensional conception of conflict emphasizes the need to consider the situation in which parties (individuals, groups or organizations) come to possess incompatible goals, their structure of interaction and the nature of their goals. We have to consider emotional (e.g. distrust) and cognitive (e.g. stereotyping) orientations that accompany a conflict situation as well as the range of action undertaken by any party in a situation of conflict.

Conflict in Organizations

Organizations are living systems consisting of interacting units performing a task in a mutually dependent manner within a structure of scarce resources. It seems commonplace to suggest that conflicts would be present in such a setting. The parties in an organization may have a conflict about the distribution of resources, or they may have a more fundamental conflict about the very structure of their organization and the basic nature of their interaction. Once the parties are in a situation of goal incompatibility, their conflict develops in a dynamic fashion, initiating valuable and much-needed constructive changes or leading to escalating strategies and destructive consequences

Analyzing Organizational Conflict

Three distinct criteria define the role of an administrator in an organization: planning, resource allocation and conflict management. There is no doubt that managing conflict permeates every aspect of the administrative role. Awareness of the various forms of conflict management that can be employed at different stages of the development of a conflict is vital, if administrators are to organize efforts towards influencing the conflict situation, the parties' attitudes or their behavior.

Inter personal Conflict.

Interpersonal conflict emphasizes the interaction of human factors in an organization. Here we are concerned with these factors as they appear in a dyadic relationship. We can broadly suggest two classes of factors as conflict sources. These are: 1. Personal. Individuals are not identical, constant or consistent. When two individuals are brought together and kept together, each with his own qualities, needs and skills, a conflict may ensue if their attributes are not meshed together in a coordinated way

improving your competence in dealing with conflict can yield positive effects in the real world. Since conflict is present in our personal and professional lives, the ability to manage conflict and negotiate desirable outcomes can help us be more successful at both. Whether you and your partner are trying to decide what brand of flat-screen television to buy or discussing the upcoming political election with your mother, the potential for conflict is present.

Conflict Management Styles

Would you describe yourself as someone who prefers to avoid conflict? Do you like to get your way? Are you good at working with someone to reach a solution that is mutually beneficial? Odds are that you have been in situations where you could answer yes to each of these questions, which underscores the important role context plays in conflict and conflict management styles in particular. The way we view and deal with conflict is learned and contextual. Is the way you handle conflicts similar to the way your parents handle conflict? If you’re of a certain age, you are likely predisposed to answer this question with a certain “No!” It wasn’t until my late twenties and early thirties that I began to see how similar I am to my parents, even though I, like many, spent years trying to distinguish myself from them

Competing has been linked to aggression, although the two are not always paired. If assertiveness does not work, there is a chance it could escalate to hostility. There is a pattern of verbal escalation: requests, demands, complaints, angry statements, threats, harassment, and verbal abuse (Johnson & Roloff, 2000)

Avoiding

The avoiding style of conflict management often indicates a low concern for self and a low concern for other, and no direct communication about the conflict takes place. However, as we will discuss later, in some cultures that emphasize group harmony over individual interests, and even in some situations in the United States, avoiding a conflict can indicate a high level of concern for the other. In

Functional.

Individuals in organizations have roles which are expected sets of behaviour associated with their position. In theory, individuals are not expected to engage in any discretionary behavior

Inter departmental Conflict.

The third major cause of organizational conflict is structural. Organizations are designed around product lines, regions or technical specialties.

Accommodating

The accommodating conflict management style indicates a low concern for self and a high concern for other and is often viewed as passive or submissive, in that someone complies with or obliges another without providing personal input. The context for and motivation behind accommodating play an important role in whether or not it is an appropriate strategy.

Conflict at Work

Conflict exists in every organization and to a certain extent indicates a healthy exchange of ideas and creativity. However, counter-productive conflict can result in employee dissatisfaction, reduced productivity, poor service to clients, absenteeism and increased employee turnover, increased work-related stress or, worse case scenario, litigation based on claims of harassment or a hostile work environment.

Common sources of conflict

Conflict is an inevitable part of human relationships. Where commitment to mission and long hours with minimal resources intersect, nonprofit workplaces can be rife with conflict interchanges. Conflict can arise from managing differing perspectives and seemingly incompatible concerns. If we can accept it as a natural part of our emotional landscape, it can be easier to work with than if we expect (or wish!) conflict to disappear and never resurface

Understanding conflict styles

Thomas and Kilman (1972) developed a model that identified five common strategies or styles for dealing with conflict. They state that individuals tend to have a personal and habitual way of dealing with conflict which can take over when we are under pressure. Sometimes it's the most productive style for resolving the conflict, but very often it's not and simply worsens the situation. A first step in dealing with conflict is to discover your preferred conflict style(s) and subsequently, learn how to manage a variety of situations using different approaches.

These styles have two basic dimensions:

Assertiveness, which relates to behaviours intended to satisfy one's own concerns. This dimension is also correlated to attaining one's goals,

Cooperativeness, which relates to behaviours intended to satisfy the other individual's concerns. This dimension can also be tracked as being concerned with relationships.

A combination of these dimensions results in five conflict behaviours:

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