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Conflict Management

Fatima Taha November 7, 2019

Outline

u  What is conflict? u  The nature of conflict u  Conflict styles instrument (TKCMI) u  Managing conflict u  Exercise and debriefing

Conflict is ….

It is derived from the Latin word “confligere”

... “To strike together”

Common Metaphors of Conflict

Conflict as . . . a war Conflict as . . . a mess Conflict as . . . a fire Conflict as . . . a game Conflict as . . . a puzzle Conflict as . . . an adventure

Progress Triangle (PT)

Portrays the three dimensions of conflict:

u  Substantive Dimension:

The “concrete” content of a conflict.

u  Relationship Dimension:

Matters pertaining to the relations between parties, such as power, legitimacy, and face.

u  Procedural Dimension:

The processes used to make decisions; the rules that govern interaction.

Daniel and Walker (2001)

Responding to Conflicts

u  Competition (win-lose) u  Compromise (common ground) u  Accommodation (yielding)

u  Avoidance (withdrawal) u  Collaboration (Problem-solve)

The Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKCMI)

Instructions

u  Consider situations in which you find your wishes different from those of another person.  How do you usually respond to such situations?

u  On the following slides are several pairs of statements describing possible behavioral responses.  For each pair, circle the "A" or "B" statement which is most characteristic of your own behavior.  In many cases, neither the "A" nor the "B" statement may be very typical of your behavior; in that case, please select the response which you would be more likely to show.

Conflict Management

“Water management is conflict management” Aaron Wolf

Management, Prevention, Mitigation, …

Conflict Management involves:

1. Assess the situation 2. Choose from a set of strategies (Alternatives) 3. Implement the preferred strategy 4. Monitor, evaluate, and improve

“Win as Much as You Can”

Exercise

u  Form 4 teams.

u  You will choose, as a team, which letter you will select from either X or Y. On a signal from the banker, you will show your chosen letter.

u  Each team must select 'X’ or ‘Y' in each round. Depending on the letter, there are four possible outcomes (various win-lose scenarios).

u  Team discussions prior to round 3,7, and 10.

u  Money is awarded according to the scoring key.

What did you learn/observe?

Analysis u The overall goal of the exercise is “Win as Much

as You Can”. Define “You”? u  If there was a consensus on choosing a collaborative

strategy this will ensure all teams win. u  If team-decision was to compete with other teams in

order to win as much as possible, it is hard to get the balance back again.

u  Commitment, decision making, and trust building:

u  TKCMI: Intergroup relations vs intragroup relations

Questions for thoughts? u Is each team obliged to fulfill the agreements they

made with the other teams?

u How will a single/multiple team be perceived if they decided to do what’s best for their team and put their interest first?

u What kind of issues that can arise (i.e. trust and face concerns)?

Conclusion

u The importance of having an implicit communication and clarifying expectations.

u The danger of self-fulfilling assumptions “groups can turn cautious competitors into the cutthroat adversaries they fear by proceeding with pre-emptive ruthlessness” … PON