Conflict Strategies, Styles and Tactics Key Questions What

1
Conflict Strategies, Styles and Tactics
2
Key Questions

• What is the best way to handle conflicts?
• How do we select an appropriate conflict style?
• What are the consequences of various styles?

3
Strategies, Styles and Tactics

• Strategies general plans for a conflict
• Only so much you can plan as conflict is
  situational and based on interaction.
• Styles general orientation that a party takes
  in a conflict
• Tactics specific moves the party makes during a
  conflict

4
Types of conflict styles (behavioral
orientations)

• Avoiding
• Protecting
• Withdrawing
• Smoothing
• Accommodating
• Yielding
• Conceding
• Competing
• Forcing
• Contending

• Compromising
• Firm compromising
• Flexible compromising
• Collaboration/Problem Solving
• We can use any style, but we develop habitual
  styles.

5
Dimensions of conflict styles

• Assertiveness
• Cooperativeness
• Disclosiveness
• Empowerment
• Activeness
• Flexibility

6
How to choose a conflict style?

• Consider the situation.
• Consider the long-term consequences.
• Consider the ethical implications.
• Choice of strategies provokes a response from
  others
• Usually involves matching

7
Style Selection Decision Tree

• See p. 229
• How important are the issues to the party?
• How important are the issues to the other?
• How important is maintaining a positive
  relationship?
• How much time pressure is there?
• To what extent does one party trust the other?

8
Research on Styles

• Forcing is more successful when
• There was one best solution
• There was a value conflict between the manager
  and a subordinate.
• The manager was fair and could give an objective
  explanation of his or her reasons for forcing a
  solution.
• The ultimate outcome benefited the organization
  rather than one person or small group.

9
Research on Styles

• Problem Solving is more effective when
• Parties were highly interdependent and had to
  work together in the future.
• There was mutual awareness for the potential of
  conflict.
• Those involved were open minded.
• There was a willingness to ignore power issues
• Formal procedures for problem solving were
  available.
• Conflict was detected early and problem solving
  is initiated early.
• People are focused on solving a common problem
  rather than defeating or adopting one person's
  preferred solution.

10
Cultural and Gender Issues

• What is the influence of culture on conflict?
• What are harmony, confrontational and regulative
  models of conflict management?
• Are conflict styles uniform across cultures?
• What is the influence of gender on conflict?
• What is task and relationship focus?
• What are the different expectations for men and
  women regarding conflict styles?
• Research shows that other factors may matter more.

11
Conflict styles and Org Context

• Three types of dispute management systems in
  organizations.
• Interest based systems find a resolution that
  meets the parties underlying interests or needs.
• Rights-based dispute determine which party is
  right by various standards (legal codes, norms,
  authority).
• Power-based systems parties attempt to coerce
  others into doing what they want.
• Default option in most organizations

12
Conflict Tactics

• Tactics specific moves and behaviors
• Threats and promises
• Toughness
• Tit for Tat
• Coalition Formation
• Issue Definition
• Metacommunication
• Integrative Tactics

13
Strategies, Styles and Tactics

• The choices you make influence the outcomes of
  the conflicts that you have.
• The greatest predictor of the move you will make
  is the prior move by the other party.