Conflict Resolution

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Conflict Resolution
Georgia Health Policy Center Community Health
Systems Development Institute
Presented by Raytheon M. Rawls
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Learning Itinerary
When and why to choose cooperation over
competition and avoidance Understand that
conflict is a natural and necessary part of
life Know that how we respond to conflict
determines if the outcomes are constructive or
destructive Learn skills to manage conflict more
effectively
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Skills to be Enhanced

• Effective Communication
• Interest-based Negotiation
• Effective Problem Solving
• Coalition Building

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Rethinking Conflict
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Fact or Fiction?
Myth 1
Conflict is always bad
Truth
Conflict is a natural and essential part of life
and can be the source of energy and creativity.
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Fact or Fiction? (cont.)
Myth 2
Conflict is always a contest
Truth
Conflict does not always result in a win-lose.
Win-win can be used to solve problems.
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Fact or Fiction? (cont.)
Myth 3
There is only one right way to handle conflict
Truth
There are many different ways to handle conflict.
All ways are useful in certain situations.
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5 Modes for Handling Conflict
Compromising
Collaborating
Avoiding
Accommodating
Competing
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Conflict Modes Assertive v. Cooperative
COMPETE
COLLABORATE
win
win/win solution
COMPROMISE
ME
The degree to which a person attempts to satisfy
his/her own concerns
find a middle ground
AVOID
ACCOMMODATE
delay
yield
The degree to which a person attempts to satisfy
the concerns of another person
YOU
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ACCOMMODATOR

• Forgoing Your Desires - Sacrifice
• Selflessness
• Obeying Orders
• Ability to Yield

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Appropriate Uses - Accommodation

• Showing reasonableness
• Developing performance
• Creating good will
• Keeping peace
• Retreating
• Issues of low importance

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AVOIDER

• Ability to Withdraw
• Sidestep
• Waiting Until the Time is Right
• Able to Leave Things Unresolved

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Appropriate Uses - Avoidance

• Issues of low importance
• Reducing tensions
• Buying time
• Low power/control
• Allowing others
• Symptomatic problems

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COLLABORATOR

• Ability to Listen, Understand, and Empathize
• Confronting Situations in a Nonthreatening Way
• Analyzing Input
• Identifying Underlying Concerns

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Appropriate Uses - Collaboration

• Integrating solutions
• Learning
• Merging perspectives
• Gaining commitment
• Improving relationships
• Building rapport

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COMPETER (Controller)

• Argue/Debate
• Use of Rank, Position, or Influence
• Asserting Opinions Feelings
• Standing Your Ground
• Ability to State Your Position

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Appropriate Uses - Competition

• Quick action/emergency
• Unpopular decision
• Issues of critical importance
• Protection

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COMPROMISER

• Finding a Middle Ground
• Making Concessions
• Assessing Value

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Appropriate Uses - Compromising

• Issues of moderate importance
• Equal power strong commitment
• Temporary solutions
• Time constraints
• Back-up for competing/collaborating

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Conflict Messages
What messages did you receive about conflict
while growing up??
gender/age messages
peers siblings
race
education
authority figures
social class
people different from me
occupation
How do these messages still impact you today?
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Sources of Conflict Identity-based Conflict
What it is Needs and values (dignity, safety and
control) Where it comes from Rooted in history,
psychology, culture and beliefs abstract and
complex What to do Focus on underlying needs and
values to empower people to speak for themselves
and interact with one another
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Sources of Conflict Resource-based Conflict
What it is Competition over material and
territorial interest Where it comes
from Tangible, focused on finite goals or
resources What to do Interest-based, mixed motive
bargaining, transactional
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Personal Conflict Inventory
Answer the following

• When conflict arises, I usually. . .
• What kinds of conflict are the hardest for me to
  deal with?
• What do I like about the way I handle conflict?
• What would I like to change about the way I
  handle conflict?

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Communication Skills
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Communication Inventory

• The easiest person for me to talk to is ________
  because _____________.
• The person I have the most trouble talking with
  is ___________ because ___________.
• When having a conversation, I dont like it when
  people ________________________.

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Communication Inventory (cont.)

• People like to talk to me because _________.
• If I am having an argument and want to make
  things better, what I usually do is _________.
• In communicating with other people, I think I
  could improve on _____________________.

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Communication Skills

• 12 Roadblocks to Communication
• Principles to Overcome Noise
• Reframing
• Effective Questioning

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12 Roadblocks to Communication
JUDGING
AVOIDING

• Criticizing
• Name-calling
• Diagnosing
• Praising Evaluatively

• Diverting
• Logical Argument
• Reassuring

SOLVING

• Ordering
• Threatening
• Moralizing
• Excessive/inappropriate questioning
• Advising

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Principles to Overcome NOISE

• Create an environment that decreases noise if
  thats not possible, increase ability to
  understand by restating the idea in various forms
• When listening, try to understand the intended
  meaning of what the other person is trying to say
• When formulating a message, consider what the
  listener will take your words to mean

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Principles to Overcome NOISE

• When speaking, take your listeners perspective
  into account
• Be an active listener
• Pay attention to message form

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Framing Errors
Statement of the problem is

• layered in toxic or value-laden language
• presented as a demand or position
• stated in global or too specific terms
• stated in attitudinal or feeling terms rather
  than behavioral or operational terms

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Reframing
Steps of Reframing

• Listen and question until you are certain that
  you understand the underlying feelings and
  substance
• Take out what is unproductive and what is in the
  way of problem solving (positions, threats,
  demands)

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Reframing
Steps of Reframing (cont.)

• Look for interest, needs, fears, motivations
• Restate message in affirmative, future-oriented
  and neutral language
• Whats important to you is. . .
• What concerns you is. . .
• You need. . .

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The Wonderful World of Why

• the power of the effective question

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Effective Questioning

• Focus more on the question than the answer
• Ask open-ended questions. Closed ended questions
  introduce a power play and limit information
  disclosed
• Dont contrive to force the answers that you want
• Start out by eliciting a story whenever possible
• Dont seek to judge, punish or to console
• Seek to understand

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Negotiation
A discussion between 2 or more people with a goal
of reaching agreement on the issues separating
the parties, when neither side has the power - or
the desire to use its power - to get its own way.
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Negotiation Theory

• Positional bargaining
• Interest-based bargaining

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Positional Negotiation
Positions

• Prejudged and preselected outcomes that have not
  been through a negotiation process
• Specific demands or solutions that a party adopts
  to meet his or her needs

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Positional Negotiation

• Starts with a solution
• Parties propose solutions and make offers and
  counteroffers until they hit solution that is
  acceptable to both of them

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Positional Negotiation
Attitudes of Positional Negotiators

• Pie is limited my goal is to get the biggest
  piece
• Win for you must be a loss for me
• We are opponents
• There is only one solutionMINE!
• Concession is a sign of weakness

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Principled Negotiation
Fisher and Urys Getting to Yes

• Focus on interests, not positions
• Separate the people from the problem
• Invent options for mutual gain
• Use objective criteria
• Develop your BATNA

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Interest-based Negotiation
Substantive Interests

• Objective, tangible needs that a party wishes to
  have satisfied as a result of the negotiation
• e.g., money to pay bills

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Interest-based Negotiation
Procedural Interests

• Needs regarding the process of resolving a
  dispute and the process of implementing the
  agreement
• e.g., an opportunity to be heard

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Interest-based Negotiation
Psychological Interests

• Emotional needs that are to be met by interaction
  with another party
• e.g., the need for respect

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Interest-based Negotiation

• Starts with identifying underlying needs
• Parties educate each other about their needs, and
  then jointly problem solve on how to meet those
  needs

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Interest-based Negotiation
Attitudes of Interest-based Negotiators

• Pie is unlimited
• Goal is to create win-win outcomes
• Interests and needs of all parties must be
  addressed to reach agreement
• We are cooperative problem solvers and the
  relationship is as important as the outcome
• There are probably many good solutions

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Effective Problem Solving
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Effective Problem Solving Model

• Identify the problem
• Analyze the problem
• clarify define the problem
• Decide how much to work on
• Brainstorm create, invent, explore, expand
• Evaluate the options
• Choose the best

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Creating the Bridge
Communication Skills Negotiation Skills Problem
Solving Skills