Conflict and Negotiation in the Workplace

1
Chapter 13

• Conflict and Negotiation in the Workplace

2
Chapter Outline

• The Conflict Process
• Sources of Conflict in Organizations
• Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles
• Structural Approaches to Conflict Management
• Resolving Conflict through Negotiation

3
The Conflict Process
Sources of Conflict
4
The Conflict Process

• Task-related / Constructive Conflict
• Conflict is aimed at issue, not parties
• Helps recognize problems, identify solutions, and
  understand issues better
• Socioemotional conflict
• Conflict viewed as a personal attack
• Foundation of conflict escalation
• Leads to dissatisfaction, stress, absenteeism,
  turnover

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The Conflict Process
Sources of Conflict
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Sources of Conflict
Incompatible Goals

• Employees or departments work goals
  seem to interfere with another persons or
  departments goals

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Sources of Conflict
Incompatible Goals
Different Values Beliefs

• Different beliefs due to unique background,
  experience, training
• Caused by specialized tasks, careers
• Explains misunderstanding in cross-cultural and
  merger relations

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Sources of Conflict
Goal Incompatibility
3 Levels of Interdependence
Different Values Beliefs
Task Interdependence
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Sources of Conflict
Goal Incompatibility
Different Values Beliefs
Task Interdependence
Scarce Resources

• Share a limited budget
• Scarcity motivates employees departments to
  compete

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Sources of Conflict
Goal Incompatibility
Different Values Beliefs
Task Interdependence
Scarce Resources

• Increases uncertainty risk
• Encourages political tactics

Ambiguity
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Sources of Conflict
Goal Incompatibility
Different Values Beliefs

• Lack of opportunity
• --reliance on stereotypes
• Lack of ability
• --arrogant communication heightens conflict
  perception
• Lack of motivation
• --conflict causes lower motivation to
  communicate, increases stereotyping

Task Interdependence
Scarce Resources
Ambiguity
Communication Problems
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Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles

• Win-win Orientation
• Believe parties will find a mutually beneficial
  solution to their disagreement
• Win-lose Orientation
• Believe that the more one party receives, the
  less the other receives
• Tends to escalate conflict, use of power/politics

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Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles
High
Forcing
Problem-Solving
Assertiveness
Compromising
Avoiding
Yielding
Low
High
Cooperativeness
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Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles

• Problem-Solving
• Preferred approach
• Parties do not have perfectly opposing interests
• Trust information sharing
• Avoiding
• If issue is trivial
• Increases frustration

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Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles

• Forcing
• You are correct dispute requires quick solution
• Other party may take advantage of more
  cooperative strategies
• Yielding
• Other party has more power than you
• Issue not as important to you
• May motivate other party to take advantage

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Interpersonal Conflict Management Styles

• Compromising
• Both parties have equal power
• Under time pressures
• Problem solving is the only style that is purely
  win/win oriented other 4 some variation of
  win/lose orientation
• Goal is to learn to apply different conflict
  styles to different situations

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Conflict Management StylesCultural Differences

• Collectivist Cultures
• Avoidance and
• Problem-Solving
• Individualistic Cultures
• Compromising and Forcing

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Conflict Management StylesGender Differences

• Women
• Problem-Solving
• and Compromising
• Men
• Forcing

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Conflict ManagementReducing Conflict

• Emphasize Superordinate Goals
• Reduce Differentiation
• Improve Communication Understanding
• Reduce Task Interdependence
• Increase Resources
• Clarify Rules Procedures

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Resolving Conflict through Negotiation
Your Position
Area of Potential Agreement
Opponents Position
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Resolving Conflict through NegotiationSituationa
l Influences on Negotiations

• Location
• Physical setting
• Time passage
• and deadlines
• Audience characteristics

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Resolving Conflict through NegotiationNegotiator
Behaviors

• Preparation goal setting
• Gathering information
• Communicating effectively
• Making concessions