CONFLICT RESOLUTION.
STYLE FLEXING IN
PROFESSIONAL
CMMUNICATION
Conflict resolution
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“Conflict” from the Latin root “to strike together” can
be defined as any situation where incompatible
activities, feelings, or intentions occur together.
The process of defusing antagonism and reaching
agreement between conflicting parties, especially
through some form of negotiation. Also, the study
and practice of solving interpersonal and
intergroup conflict.
Strategies of diffusion
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Strategies for resolving or preventing the
development of conflict can be classified as
avoidance, diffusion, or confrontation.
Conflict resolution in education includes any strategy
that promotes handling disputes peacefully and
cooperatively outside of, or in addition to,
traditional disciplinary procedures.
The negotiation process
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Most conflict resolution programs employ some form
of negotiation as the primary method of
communication between parties. In the negotiation
process, parties with opposing interests hold
conversations to settle a dispute.
Negotiation can be distributive, where each party
attempts to win as many concessions to his or her own
self-interest as possible (win-lose), or integrative,
where parties attempt to discover solutions that
embody mutual self-interest (win-win).
Responses to a conflict
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withdrawing from a conflict;
demanding or requesting the opposing party to
concede;
providing reasons the opposing party should
concede (appealing to norms);
proposing alternatives to the opposing party;
proposing “if” statements, suggesting willingness to
negotiate.
Cooperation and Competition
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Social Facilitation As a rule there is a higher degree of
responsiveness and greater productivity in a group setting
than when the same individuals work alone.
Extreme competition involves some form of aggression, and
earlier we noted the cultural influences on this behavior.
Social practices can mold aggressive or peaceful response
patterns. A most important cultural factor is childhood
experience.
It was more than proximity that reduced the tension. It
was working together toward overriding goals, important
to all concerned.
Managing communication conflict
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Simply put, “communication is the management of
messages for the purpose of creating meaning”.
However, add to that a minimum of two interacting
people who perceive incompatible differences or
threats to something they value-the result is
communication conflict.
For every relationship, conflict is a likely ingredient.
However, the ability to effectively manage
communication challenges does not necessarily come
naturally.
Interpersonal communication is
characterized by specific features
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1. Face to face interaction between two people,
2. People treat one another as unique individuals,
3. Interdependence, and
4. An amount of disclosure of personal information.
The aim of the managing
communication conflict
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Conflict is an unpleasant fact of life. It is impossible to
avoid conflicts, and the challenge is to learn how to
handle them effectively.
Conflict, when handled well, can develop stronger and
more satisfying relationships. The purpose of this unit
is to identify individual styles in which people manage
conflict in order to meet their expectations and goals.
Conformity
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Adaptation of one’s behavior or beliefs to match
those of the other members of a group.
Conformity describes the adaptation of behavior
that occurs in response to unspoken group
pressure. It differs from compliance, which is
adaptation of behavior resulting from overt
pressure. Individuals conform to or comply with
group behavior in an attempt to “fit in” or to follow
the norms of the social group.
Defense mechanisms
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Defense mechanisms allow negative feelings to be
lessened without an alteration of the situation that is
producing them, often by distorting the reality of that
situation in some way.
Defense mechanisms include denial, repression,
suppression, projection, displacement, reaction
formation, regression, fixation, identification,
introjection, rationalization, isolation, sublimation,
compensation, and humor.
Denial and repression
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Denial and repression both distort reality by
keeping things hidden from consciousness. In the
case of denial, an unpleasant reality is ignored,
and a realistic interpretation of potentially
threatening events is replaced by a benign but
inaccurate one.
Either feelings or events (or both) may be denied. In
very young children, a degree of denial is normal.
Suppression
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Suppression differs from repression and denial in
that the undesirable feelings are available but
deliberately ignored (unlike repression and denial,
where the person is completely unaware of these
feelings).
Suppression generally works by replacing
unpleasant thoughts with others that do not produce
stress. This may be done instinctively, or it may be
done deliberately in a therapeutic context.
Projection and displacement
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Projection and displacement allow a person to
acknowledge anxiety-producing feelings but
transfer them to either another source or another
object. In projection, the undesirable feelings are
attributed to another person or persons.
An angry person believes others are angry at her;
a person who is critical of others believes they are
critical of him.
Rationalization
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Rationalization, another type of defense
mechanism, is an attempt to deny one’s true motives
(to oneself or others) by using a reason (or
rationale) that is more logical or socially acceptable
than one’s own impulses.
Like rationalization, isolation is a rather complicated
defense.
Learned helplessness
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Learned helplessness in humans can begin very
early in life if infants see no correlation between
actions and their outcome. Institutionalized infants,
as well as those suffering from maternal deprivation
or inadequate mothering, are especially at risk for
learned helplessness due to the lack of adult
responses to their actions.
Five-level hierarchy of needs
1) biological (food, water, oxygen, sleep);
2) safety ;
3) belongingness and love (participating in
affectionate sexual and non-sexual relationships,
belonging to social groups);
4) esteem (being respected as an individual); and
5) self-actualization(becoming all that one is capable
of being
Sheldon’s somatotypes and character interpretations
Social competence
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Mastering the social, emotional, and cognitive
skills and behaviors needed to succeed as a
member of society.
Social competence refers to the social, emotional,
and cognitive skills and behaviors that children
need for successful social adaptation.
Importance of social competence
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Whereas parents are the primary source of social
and emotional support for children during the first
years of life, in later years peers begin to play a
significant complementary and unique role in
promoting child social-emotional development.
Many are emotionally dependent on adults, and
immature in their social behavior.
Developmental changes and social competence
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The key markers of social competence listed in the
previous section are remarkably consistent across
the developmental periods of the preschool years,
middle childhood, and adolescence.
Across these developmental periods, prosocial skills
(friendly, cooperative, helpful behaviors) and selfcontrol skills (anger management, negotiation
skills, problem-solving skills) are key facets of social
competence.
Family contributions to social
competence
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Because the family is the primary context for social
development, there are a number of ways in which
family interaction patterns may help or hinder the
development of children’s social competence.
As children get older, family interaction styles and
the ways in which parents discipline may play a
primary role in the development of noncompliant
or aggressive behaviors in children.
Interventions to promote social
competence
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The purpose of social skill training is to help
unpopular person learn to treat their peers in
positive ways. Commonly taught skills include
helping, sharing, and cooperation. The skills might
also include anger management, negotiation, and
conflict resolution skills.
Problem solving skills (e.g., identifying the
problem, considering alternative solutions,
choosing a solution and making a plan) are often
included in social skill training programs.
Socialization
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The process by which a person learns to conform
individual behavior and responses to the norms
and values of society.
Socialization is a lifelong process that begins during
infancy in the complex interaction between
people.
Communication Style Defined
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The impressions that others form about us are based
on what they observe us saying and doing.
They have no way of knowing our innermost
thoughts and feelings, so they make decisions about
us based on what they see and hear.
Fundamental Concepts Supporting Communication
Styles
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Individual differences exist and are important.
Individual style differences tend to be stable.
There is a limited number of styles.
A communication style is a way of thinking and
behaving.
To create the most productive working relationships,
it is necessary to get in sync with the behavior
patterns (communication style) of the people you
work with.
Learning to Cope with
Communication Style Bias
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Almost everyone experiences communication style
bias from time to time. The bias is likely to surface
when you meet someone who displays a style
distinctly different from your own.
Accurate self-knowledge is essential for developing
strong interpersonal relationships. Knowledge of
your communication style gives you a fresh
perspective and sets the stage for improved
relations with others.
The Dominance Continuum
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Low dominance. These people are characterized by
a tendency to be cooperative and eager to assist
others.
High dominance. These people give advice freely
and frequently initiate demands.
Where Should You Be on the
Dominance Continuum?
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Is there any best place to be on the dominance
continuum? Not really. Successful people can be
found at all points along the continuum.
Nevertheless, there are times when people need to
act decisively to infl uence the adoption of their
ideas and communicate their expectations clearly.
This means that someone low in dominance may
need to become more assertive temporarily to
achieve an objective.
The Sociability Continuum
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Sociability can also be thought of as a measure of
whether you tend to control or express your feelings.
Those high in sociability usually express their feelings
freely, whereas people low on the continuum tend to
control their feelings.
The person who is classified as being high in sociability
is open and talkative and likes personal associations.
The person who is low in sociability is more reserved
and formal in social relationships.
Versatility: The Third Dimension
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Persons who can create and maintain interpersonal
relations with others, regardless of their
communication styles, are displaying versatility.
Versatility can be defined as acting in ways that
earn a social endorsement.
Endorsement means simply other people’s approval
of our behavior. People give us their endorsement
when they feel comfortable and nondefensive with
us.