Stress & conflict management

By- Payal Chhabra

}  Stress is defined as an adaptive response to an external situation that results in physical, psychological and/or behavioral deviations for organizational participants.

}  Stress is the body’s general response to environmental situations.

1.  Stress is a neutral word- Stress itself is not bad in itself.

Ø  Distress Ø  Eustress

2.  Stress is associated with constrain & Demand-

Ø  Constrain prevents individual from doing what he or she desires.

Ø  Demands refer to the loss of something desired.

3. Two conditions are necessary for potential stress to become actual stress-

i.  Uncertainty over the outcome,& ii.  Outcome must be important.

4.Stress is not simply anxiety –Stress may be accompanied by anxiety, but two are not synonymous. Ø  Anxiety is psychological & emotional whereas

stress operates in the physiological sphere also along with psychological sphere.

5. Stress is not necessarily damaging, bad or to be avoided.

Political

Technological

Extra organiza

tional Stress

Socio- demographic

Administrative policies

Downsizing Competitive Pressure

Merit pay plans

Organizational Structure & Design

Centralization & Formalization Role ambiguity &Conflict

Organizational Process Tight Control

Down ward communication Centralized decision making

Working Condition Crowded work area Noise, heat or cold

Unsafe dangerous conditions

Job Stress

Lack of group cohesiveness Lack of social support

Group Stressors

}  Always moving, walking, eating rapidly, }  Feel impatient with the rate at which most event take

place, }  Strive to think or to do two or more things at once, }  Cannot cope with leisure time, }  Are obsessed with numbers, measuring success in

terms of how many or how much everything they acquire.

}  Never suffer with sense of time urgency and have patience,

}  Feel no display or discuss their achievements unless such exposure is demanded by situation,

}  Play for sun ad relaxation, rather than to exhibit their superiority at any cost,

}  Can relax without guilt.

}  Type A can operate under moderate to high level stress }  They like time pressure working, }  They are fast workers and believe in quantity over

quality, }  They are rarely creative, }  They are more likely to be selected in an interview due

to their attitude, competence, aggressiveness, success desires etc.

}  Role overload. }  Role conflict. }  Inter role conflict. }  Task characteristics.

}  Conflict: A battle, contest of opposing forces, discord, antagonism existing between primitive desires and instincts and moral, religious, or ethical ideals.

}  Conflict occurs when two or more people oppose one another because their needs, wants, goals, or values are different. Conflict is almost always accompanied by feelings of anger, frustration, hurt, anxiety, or fear.

Traditional View Current View

1) Conflict is avoidable. 1)Conflict is inevitable.

2)Conflict is caused by management error In designing organization or by trouble makers.

2)Conflict arises from many causes, including org, structure, unavoidable differences in goals, in perceptions & values of specialized personnel & so on.

3)Conflict disturbs the organization & prevents optimal performance.

3)Conflict contributes & detracts from org. performance in varying degrees.

4)The task of the management is to eliminate conflict.

4)The task of the management is to manage the level of conflict & its resolution for optimal org. performance.

5)Optimal org. performance requires the removal of conflict.

5)Optimal organizational performance requires a moderate level of conflict.

}  Intrapersonal Conflict }  Interpersonal Conflict }  Organizational Conflict }  Constructive Conflict }  Destructive Conflict

}  It refers to conflict with in an individual. }  The reason for intrapersonal conflict- Ø  Frustration Ø  Numerous roles which demand equal attention but

is not possible to devote. Ø  Goals having both negative & positive aspect Ø  Cognitive dissonances.{concerning perception,

language, reasoning, and emotion, is represented and transformed in the brain.}

Ø  Neurotic tendencies.{disturbed}

}  Interpersonal conflict occurs between two individuals.

}  The reason for interpersonal conflict Ø Disagreements over ideas, interests, events Ø Physical and verbal aggression.

}  At its most basic, conflict involves a disagreement among parties. In a company, conflict can occur between individuals or among groups.

}  Constructive conflict is not identified on the loudness or intensity of people’s voices when arguing or on the glaring look of people’s faces.

}  The outcome of constructive conflict is productive.

}  Conflict is inevitable, yet it can be controlled and minimized. How an individual or a group responds to conflict and the behavior towards the situation determines the negative or positive outcome of the disagreement. If conflict is mishandled or not properly managed by the parties involved, th.en an unproductive and unlikely result will be generated

}  Conflict management is the practice of identifying and handling conflict in a sensible, fair, and efficient manner. Conflict management requires such skills as effective communicating, problem solving, and negotiating with a focus on interests

}  Meditation }  Cognitive restructuring }  Muscle relaxation }  Biofeedback }  Time Mangement

}  Job redesign }  Changes in workloads }  Flexible working hours }  Work shop dealing with role clarity & role

analysis

Quadrant 1 Important &

Urgent Most problem – solving activities

Quadrant 2 Not

important But Urgent Answering the

phone

Quadrant 3 Important But not Urgent

Reading book related to

current priorities

Quadrant 4 Not

Important not urgent Worrying on being angry