Lecture 7 - Conflict

Question 1

What Is Conflict? Whose theory is it?

Answer 1

A disagreement between two or more parties who perceive that they have incompatible concerns’ Bloisi, W (2007)

Question 2

What Is Organisational Coonflict

Answer 2

is a state of discord caused by the actual or perceived opposition of needs, values, and interests between people working together. Conflict takes many forms in organisations.

Question 3

What are the stages of conflict?

Whose theory is it?

Answer 3

Pondy (1967)
Stage 1 – Latent Conflict
Stage 2- Perceived conflict 
	Stage 2 – Perceived Conflict
Stage 3- Felt conflict Stage 4- Manifest conflict 
	Stage 3 – Felt Conflict
Stage 5- Conflict outcome 
	Stage 4 – Manifest Conflict
Functional/ Dysfunctional 
	Stage 5 – Conflict Outcome: Functional/Dysfunctional

Question 4

What Types of Conflict Are There?

Answer 4

Intrapersonal (The Self)
Eg: Work-Life Balance; Ethical dilemma; Personality; Mood
Interpersonal
Eg: Role Conflict; Culture; Relationship
Intragroup
Eg: Inequity of Reward, Promotion; Roles; Competition; Personalities, Relationships
Intergroup
Eg: Departmental Resources; Practices; Policies; Dynamics; Cultures
Inter organisation
Eg: Mergers; Takeovers; Industry

Question 5

What Is A Frame Of Reference And Whose Theory Is It?

Answer 5

(Fox, A 1966, 73)

‘Frame of reference’ refers to a particular position or set of assumptions held by employees and how these views have a bearing in conflict situations

Unitarist
Pluralist
Radical
Interactionist

Question 6

What Is A Unitarist and Whose Theory Is It?

Answer 6

(Johnson 2000)
Sees organisations as essentially harmonious, co-operative structures
Assumes shared interests exist between workers & managers
De-politicises the relations between groups, treating Conflict as Negative & needing to be resolved.
Often blames 3rd party agitators such as unions
Aligned to HRM philosophy

Question 7

What Is A Pluralist? Whose Theory Is It?

Answer 7

(Johnson 2000)
Sees organisations as essentially harmonious, co-operative structures
Assumes shared interests exist between workers & managers
De-politicises the relations between groups, treating Conflict as Negative & needing to be resolved.
Often blames 3rd party agitators such as unions
Aligned to HRM philosophy

Question 8

What Is A Radical Conflict Situation?

Answer 8

Conflict is the inevitable outcome of exploitative employment relations in a capitalist economy
Those that own the means of production exploit the employees ( Marxist critique of capitalism )
Individuals and groups engage in covert methods of exerting control eg Ackroyd & Thompson (99) ‘Organisational misbehaviour’
( Throwing the Spanner in the Works)

Question 9

What is the interactionist Conflict theory and who is it by?

Answer 9

(McKenna 1994, De Dreu1997)
Refined version of pluralism
Conflict is inevitable & necessary
There is an optimum level of conflict
(too much will hamper an organisation’s welfare & too little will stilt any impetus to change)
Functional conflict should be encouraged as it challenges complacency & allows innovation

Question 10

What is a Dysfunctional conflict?

Answer 10

undesirable and leads to negative outcomes like aggression, violence and hostility.

Question 11

What is a functional conflict?

Answer 11

Has the potential to stimulate creative resolution of problems and lead to a positive outcome.

Question 12

Benefits of functional conflict and whose theory is it?

Answer 12

Taffinder 1998
Increased motivation to deal with underlying problems
Sharpening people’s understanding of the business goals & increasing their creativity
Stimulating a sense of urgency
Increasing understanding of differences between groups ……..

Question 13

Co-ordination Devicesas a means of managing Dysfunctional conflict and who is it by?

Answer 13

Organisations use 6 devices to co-ordinate activities 
–Rule, policies & procedures 
–Using hierarchy 
–Goal clarification & communication 
–Temporary task forces 
–Permanent project teams 
–Liaison roles 
–Integrator roles 

Adapted from Hales,C (93) in Huczynski & Buchanan (2007)

Question 14

Conflict Resolution Approaches and whose it by?

Answer 14

Thomas 1976
Conflict resolution refers to a process which has as its objective the ending of conflict between disagreeing parties.
Thomas sees conflict handling along 2 dimensions:
Assertiveness - a person’s desire to satisfy his own concerns
Co-operation - the willingness to satisfy the other party’s concerns

Question 15

Conflict Management Strategies

Answer 15

Accommodation - give in to the other
Avoidance - ignore
Collaboration - Work together
Compromise - Meet in the middle
Competition - Each party will try to maximise its own gain

Question 16

Whats ways can you resolve a conflict

Answer 16

Mediation
Neutral 3rd party assists in achieving a negotiated solution
Mediator does not control the agreement, they influence the resolution process
Causes less damage to long-term relationships

Arbitration
A 3rd party can impose an agreement that is binding on parties in conflict
Often used if mediation fails

Question 17

Interorganisational Conflict - Formal Organisation

Answer 17

Goals 
Strategy 
Financial resources
Systems and procedures
Structure
management

Question 18

Interorganisational Conflict - Informal Organisation

Answer 18

Values, attitudes and beliefs
leadership style and behaviour
Organisational behaviour and norms of behaviour
Power, Politics and conflict
Informal Groupings

Question 19

Sources of Organisational Conflict

Answer 19

Different Goals and Time Horizons
Different groups have differing goals and focus.

Overlapping Authority
Two or more managers claim authority for the same activities which leads to conflict between the managers and workers.

Task Interdependencies
One member of a group or a group fails to finish a task that another member or group depends on, causing the waiting worker or group to fall behind.

Different Evaluation or Reward Systems
A group is rewarded for achieving a goal, but another interdependent group is rewarded for achieving a goal that conflicts with the first group.

Scarce Resources
Managers can come into conflict over the allocation of scarce resources.

Status Inconsistencies
Some individuals and groups have a higher organizational status than others, leading to conflict with lower status groups.

Question 20

What is Power?

Answer 20

‘The capacity of an individual or group to modify the conduct of other individuals or groups in a manner which they desire and without having to modify their own conduct in a manner which they do not desire.’ (Tawney 1931, p229)

‘A has power over B to the extent that he can get B to do something that B would not otherwise do.’ (Dahl 1957, p203)

Question 21

What is the Role Of Organisational Power?

Answer 21

Power does not exist in isolation
There must be a possibility that power can be exercised
Power is situational
Few people have no power
What matters is the relative amount of power compared to the other party.
Authority - delegated from above, comes with the job.