Conflict Resolution in the Workplace: Strategies and Models

Introduction

Conflict is an inevitable component of human interrelationships in general, as well as in the workplace in particular. In many respects, conflict is necessary, and it can be beneficial to the establishment of mutual understandings and relationships within the workplace environment. However, conflicts also represent the distinct potential to undermine work relationships and organizational efficiency where they are not addressed and resolved appropriately.

Successful conflict resolution requires a basic understanding of the potential sources of conflict, the importance of effective communication, and specific awareness of concepts such as validation, negotiation, the role of mediation, and the concept of constructive resolution. In principle, what separates organizations and working groups that manage conflict well from those that do not is not necessarily the relative frequency of conflicts, but rather, the relative effectiveness of the processes used to achieve conflict resolution.

Sources of Conflict

In the workplace, as in almost every other human endeavor, certain individuals have a greater natural affinity for one another than for others. In personal relationships, one often has the relative luxury of selecting one's acquaintances and friends. That is usually not the case in the workplace, because organizational staffing decisions and working groups are formed out of organizational necessity and the specific needs of work groups rather than in accordance with personal preference and choice.

One of the most common specific sources of interpersonal conflict in the workplace is different perceptions among individuals about their respective work responsibilities and areas of authority (Blair, 2003). More particularly, there are two principal ways that conflicts typically arise in this regard. First, there is potential for conflict anytime employees have different expectations about who is responsible for what, because in the absence of clearly defined understanding, it is inevitable that someone will get blamed for an oversight or failure that he or she did not realize was perceived by someone else to be his or her responsibility. When that occurs, the individual who did not consider the oversight or failure to be his or her responsibility understandably reacts defensively to any suggestion to that effect; they may even interpret the suggestion as a deliberately hostile act (Blair, 2003).

Second, there is also potential for conflict anytime employees have different expectations about who retains decision-making authority over specific areas (Blair, 2003). Where lines of authority are not clearly drawn or mutually understood, there is potential for conflict by virtue of one employee interpreting the actions of another as being deliberately disrespectful or as purposeful attempts to undermine or sabotage one another (Blair, 2003).

Naturally, relationships among and between supervisors and subordinates are subject to many of the same influences and potential sources of conflict as those between other coworkers. For example, supervisors and subordinates may experience personality clashes just as colleagues do. Likewise, coordination of mutual expectations between supervisors and their subordinates is equally important, since discrepancies in that regard are frequently the source of disappointment and perceptions of poor performance. However, there are also other aspects of the supervisor-supervisee relationship that often give rise to specific types of conflict unique to that dynamic (Daft, 2005).

The contemporary American vocational environment is much more diverse than it was in previous generations. Whereas the professional workplace used to be relatively one-dimensional in terms of gender, race, ethnicity, and culture of origin, the modern workplace is extremely diverse in those respects. Today, women constitute a large proportion of professional staff; racial and ethnic minorities have achieved greater equality of educational and professional opportunity; and American society is more culturally diverse than ever before. As a measure of societal progress, that is undoubtedly a positive development. However, there is no denying that the coexistence of members of a more diverse society holds greater potential for certain kinds of conflicts that arise in connection with that diversity.

The Importance of Communication

Regardless of the specific nature or source of conflict in the workplace, effective and meaningful communication is one of the most essential mechanisms for resolving conflicts positively (Blair, 2003; Daft, 2005; Wisinski, 1993). Moreover, effective two-way communication is also one of the most important ways of avoiding conflict, or at least mitigating its severity when it does occur. By contrast, ineffective communication almost always maximizes the potential for conflict and magnifies the potential harm associated with its consequences (Blair, 2003; Daft, 2005; Wisinski, 1993).

The crucial importance of communication is understandable when one considers the way that conflicts typically emerge in the workplace (Wisinski, 1993). By definition, personality conflicts often manifest themselves in the avoidance of conversation beyond the minimum necessary to accomplish work-related tasks. However, when coworkers restrict their conversation to that degree, there are invariably issues that generate conflict in the so-called grey areas — where communication is not absolutely required, but where minimal communication leaves much more room for unnecessary error and misunderstanding than less restrictive communication patterns would (Blair, 2003; Wisinski, 1993).

Therefore, in many respects, communication is crucial simply because so many different types of conflict are either directly or indirectly attributable to a lack of sufficient or sufficiently clear communication (Blair, 2003; Wisinski, 1993). Communication is equally important after conflicts do emerge, because the principal method of resolving conflicts is precisely through interpersonal communication. In that regard, the most important aspect of changed communication patterns — for the purposes of avoiding future conflict arising the same way — is not necessarily the content of the specific communication that eventually resolves the conflict. Rather, what is important is that the resolution process identifies and rectifies the patterns of communication breakdown responsible for the original dispute, so that they can be corrected going forward (Blair, 2003; Wisinski, 1993).

Conclusion

There is no doubt that the development of conflicts is a natural occurrence in the workplace. There are various specific sources of conflict, but at their root virtually all of them share several key components. Generally, interpersonal conflicts are attributable to a lack of awareness or understanding of the perspectives and concerns of others, as well as to the absence of effective communication patterns. Whereas some conflicts relate, at least initially, to ordinary interpersonal differences, others are functions of differing understandings or expectations in relation to vocational responsibilities or respective areas of authority. In the modern workplace, insensitivity to or ignorance of diversity issues may also contribute to conflicts.

Regardless of the source and nature of conflict, the vast majority are more effectively resolved through methodologies that address the underlying issues rather than through approaches that focus primarily on isolated outcomes and treat conflicts on a one-dimensional and superficial level. Ultimately, the most effective conflict resolution strategies are those that promote better communication through mutual awareness of respective perspectives, and that provide solutions for systemic sources of conflict in a way that fosters mutual respect and trust among coworkers.

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