WEEK 11-CONFLICT Prepared by: Earl Christian B. Bonifacio, RPm WHAT IS CONFLICT AND ITS CAUSES? 1. Conflict - occurs in a group when the actions or beliefs of one or more members of the group are unacceptable to and resisted by one or more of the other members. ▪ Intergroup conflict involves two or more. ▪ Intragroup conflict occurs withina group. 2. The most common sources for conflict are competition, conflicts over the distribution of resources, power struggles, task and process conflicts, and relationship conflicts. 3. Competing: Cooperation is associated with positive motivational and physiological processes. Competition increases conflict by pitting members against one another. WHAT IS CONFLICT AND ITS CAUSES? a. Mixed-motive situations, like the prisoner’s dilemma game, tempt individuals to compete rather than cooperate. b. Behavioral assimilation is caused by the norm of reciprocity ▪ Competition sparks competition (negative reciprocity) ▪ Cooperation (to a lesser extent) provokes cooperation (positive reciprocity). ▪ Choices in the PDG are influenced by situational factors (e.g., the name of the game), personality factors (e.g., social value orientation; Van Lange et al., 1997), sex, age, and the size of the incentives offered. ▪Although many educational settings stress competition, reviews conducted by Johnson and Johnson (2009) suggest cooperation-based classrooms promote both well-being and learning. WHAT IS CONFLICT AND ITS CAUSES? 4. Sharing: Social dilemmas stimulate conflict by tempting members to act in their own selfinterest to the detriment of the group and its goals. Disputes arise when members: ▪ exploit a shared resource (a commons dilemma or social trap), ▪ do not contribute their share (a public goods dilemma, free riding) ▪ disagree on the procedures to follow in dividing the resources (procedural justice) and respond negatively to resource distributions (distributive justice), ▪ feel they are receiving less than they should, given their contribution to the group ▪ take more than their fair share of responsibility for a successful outcome (egocentrism) or avoid blame for group failure (self-serving attributions of responsibility). WHAT IS CONFLICT AND ITS CAUSES? 5. Controlling: Power struggles are common in groups as members vie for control over leadership, status, and position (Morrill, 1995). 6. Working: As group members collaborate on tasks, differences and disagreements can generate task and process conflict. ▪ Task conflict stems from disagreements about issues that are relevant to the group’s goals and outcomes. Even though such substantive conflicts help groups reach their goals, these disagreements can turn into personal, unpleasant conflicts. ▪ Process conflicts occur when members do not agree on group strategies, policies, and methods. ▪ Groups, by dealing with work conflict, can improve their functioning, but in most cases such conflict undermines productivity. WHAT IS CONFLICT AND ITS CAUSES? 7. Liking and disliking: Relationship conflict occurs when individual members do not like one another. ▪ Any factor that causes disaffection between group members (e.g., differences in attitudes and objectionable personal qualities) can increase personal conflict. ▪ Balance theory predicts that group members will respond negatively when they disagree with those they like or agree with those they dislike, but as Taylor’s (1970) work confirmed, conflict is greatest when group members both disagree with and dislike each other. WHY DOES CONFLICT ESCALATE? 1. When individuals defend their viewpoints in groups. 2. Conflict is exacerbated by members’ tendency to misperceive others and to assume that the other party’s behavior is caused by personal rather than situational factors. 3. As conflicts worsen, members shift from soft to hard tactics. 4. Other factors that contribute to the escalation of conflict in groups includes: ▪ Negative reciprocity, as when negative actions provoke negative reactions in others; ▪ Angry emotions that trigger expressions of anger among members ▪ the formation of coalitions that embroil formerly neutral members in the conflict. 5. The level of incivility on the Internet is influence by norms and community sanction against norm violators. HOW CAN GROUP MEMBERS MANAGE THEIR CONFLICTS? 1. In many cases, members use negotiation to resolve disagreements and disputes. ▪ Distributive negotiation - involves dividing up resources. ▪ Integrative negotiation - involves identifying the issues underlying the dispute and then working together to find a solution that is satisfying to all parties. 2. The Harvard Negotiation Project maintain that principled, integrative negotiation is more effective than either soft or hard bargaining. 3. Group member can reduce conflict by actively communicating information about their motives and goals through discussion. HOW CAN GROUP MEMBERS MANAGE THEIR CONFLICTS? 4. The dual concern model identifies four (or five) means of dealing with conflicts— avoiding, yielding, fighting (integration), and cooperating (and conciliation)—that differ along two dimensions: concern for self and concern for others. HOW CAN GROUP MEMBERS MANAGE THEIR CONFLICTS? 5. Other factors that contribute to the de-escalation of conflict in groups includes the ff.: ▪ responding to competition with a tit-for-tat (TFT) strategy, as described by Axelrod (1984); ▪ allowing time for individuals to regain composure; ▪ expressing positive rather than negative emotions, including forgiveness; ▪ using third-party interventions such as mediators to who impose: Arbitration – Offering solutions Mediation - Guide disputants to a compromise ▪ Eastern cultures favor avoidance, whereas Western cultures favor competition more than Eastern ones. IS CONFLICT AN UNAVOIDABLE EVIL OR A NECESSARY GOOD? 1. Conflict is a natural consequence of joining a group and cannot be avoided completely. 2. Research (see Behfar et al., 2008; Jehn, 2014) suggests that conflicts, when managed successfully, promote positive group functioning.
