View of Conflict and Managing Conflict Options

¶ … narrator confront his father and use the steps of effective communication?

The conflict between the narrator and his father could have been successfully resolved through the use of the five steps for effective confrontation. These five steps are the prelude to conflict, the triggering event, the initiation phase, the differentiation phase, and the resolution phase. Certain choices and behaviors made at each of these ponts within a conflict influence how effectively the conflict is resolved.

The first step would be to recognize and be aware of the prelude to conflict, which includes all of the variables that allow the conflict to occur between the people involved. In the scenario, the prelude to conflict includes the narrator and his father as the participants in the conflict situation, the fact that they have a strained relationship with a history of conflict, the mother who acts as a bystander, and the context of the conflict, which is the family dinner table.

The next step would be to become aware of the triggering event, which is the behavior that could be identified as the start of the conflict, or the conflict stimulus. The triggering event in the scenario probably would not be agreed upon by the narrator and his father. The father would most likely see the negative comment made by the narrator regarding the president as the triggering event, while the narrator would probably see the father calling him an idiot as the triggering event.

The initiation phase is the next step, in which the conflict becomes overt and apparent to all involved. In the scenario, this phase occurred when the narrator told the father that he wasn't listening, thus indicating to the father that they were now in conflict. This phase acted to transition the scenario into the next phase, full blown conflict.

The next step is the differentiation phase, where a choice is made by the participants whether to engage in constructive or deconstructive strategies to address the conflict, which has now become obvious to everyone involved. In the scenario, the participants chose deconstructive approaches. Constructive tactics in response to this conflict could have included both parties more effectively communicating to each other their perspectives on how the conflict arose and how they want the conflict to play out.

The final phase, the resolution phase, follows the use of constructive strategies in the differentiation phase. . This phase involves participants reaching an agreement regarding outcomes to the conflict. Resolution of the conflict in the scenario might include the agreement to try and be more understanding and patient with each other, and to not say hurtful comments that cause each other to feel disrespected and become angry.

Change some part of the scenario to use a different communication option, state the conflict strategy to be used and the probable outcome.