Resolving Conflicts with Others

Chapter eight examines management theories about interpersonal conflict and the management skill of resolving conflicts with others. It is striking to consider just how many conflicts big and small that we experience with others in the course of a typical workday, week, month, or year. Yet in some sense it should not be all that surprising when one also realizes just how much potential for conflict there is in the interpersonal workplace arena. We might even think it inevitable that social beings who come from such diverse backgrounds and experiences, who possess varying needs and proclivities, whose tastes and preferences are so different, whose goals and objectives are so distinct, and yet whose jobs are increasingly intertwined and outcomes interdependent, will eventually come to some degree of disagreement. Interpersonal conflict occurs where there is the real or perceived clash of interests or subsequent influence attempts. That is to say, conflict happens when one person thinks that another might intentionally or even indirectly negatively affect something that they care about. Despite widespread notions that conflict is a bad thing that should be avoided whenever possible, it can be quite functional and actually serve to enhance the quality of an interaction—if managed to the right form, amount, and direction. In fact, management theory supports the idea that there are better or worse ways to deal with conflict that then produce positive or negative results. Therefore in this eighth chapter we look at how one can better navigate the conflict process and achieve positive conflict outcomes with people.