Unit 6 Power, Politics & Managing Conflict

Question 1

Active Listening

Answer 1

The process of absorbing another negotiator’s perspective, which involves paraphrasing what the person says, inquiring to improve understanding, and acknowledging the other person’s perspective.

Question 2

Anchoring Effect

Answer 2

The fact that the first estimate or offer made in a negotiation tends to anchor, or have a powerful influence on, the haggling that follows.

Question 3

Appraisal Tendencies

Answer 3

Goals, typically unconscious, that predispose us to respond to the world in predictable ways.

Question 4

Backlash Effect

Answer 4

The tendency for people to judge women who negotiate on their own behalf negatively due to their violation of traditional gender stereotypes.

Question 5

BATNA

Answer 5

Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement, or the “Plan B” that a negotiator will follow in the event that the current deal doesn’t pan out.

Question 6

Contingent Contract

Answer 6

A bet that hedges parties’ differing predictions of how future events will unfold.

Question 7

Cultural Prototypes

Answer 7

Cultural averages that fail to account for the great diversity found both across individuals and across cultures.

Question 8

Distributive Negotiation

Answer 8

Negotiations in which parties are competing to claim the greatest amount of a single finite resource. Also known as a zero-sum game.

Question 9

Egocentrism

Answer 9

The tendency for our perceptions and judgments to be biased in a self-serving manner, often without our conscious knowledge.

Question 10

Endowment Effect

Answer 10

The common tendency for owners to overvalue commodities simply because they own them.

Question 11

Escalation of Commitment

Answer 11

The common tendency to pursue an endeavor with the goal of recouping sunk costs when more careful analysis would lead us to recognize that walking away is the wiser choice.

Question 12

Escalation of Conflict

Answer 12

The common desire to want to “beat” the other party at virtually any cost.

Question 13

Ethical Fading

Answer 13

The tendency for the ethical dimensions of decisions to fade from our minds.

Question 14

Incidental Emotions

Answer 14

Emotions arising from a situation unrelated to the decision we are facing.

Question 15

In-Group Favoritism

Answer 15

The tendency to give special treatment to members of your own group at the expense of outsiders.

Question 16

Integral Emotions

Answer 16

Emotions arising from the decision we are facing.

Question 17

Integrative Negotiation

Answer 17

Negotiations in which parties can create value by making tradeoffs across interests and preferences.

Question 18

Loss Aversion

Answer 18

The common tendency to experience losses much more strongly than comparable gains.

Question 19

Mythical Fixed Pie of Negotiation

Answer 19

The tendency for negotiators to assume that their interests are at odds with the other party’s and thus to reject concessions simply because they were offered by an adversary.

Question 20

Norm of Reciprocity

Answer 20

A widespread social rule that compels people to respond in kind to generous behaviors such as gifts, favors, and concessions.

Question 21

Parasitic Integration

Answer 21

Taking value away from those who don’t have a voice in the negotiation.

Question 22

Perspective Taking

Answer 22

Consciously attempting to look beyond our own viewpoint to think about how others may view the world.

Question 23

Positive Bargaining Zone

Answer 23

The range of outcomes that parties to a negotiation would prefer over an impasse.

Question 24

Relational Accounts

Answer 24

Requests that allow women negotiators to overcome the backlash effect by conveying genuine concern for the organization and/or colleagues.

Question 25

Reservation Value

Answer 25

The point at which a negotiator is indifferent between a negotiated agreement and impasse.

Question 26

Social Proof

Answer 26

The common tendency to look to others’ behavior whenever we have doubts about the appropriate decision or action to take.

Question 27

Stereotype Threat

Answer 27

The fact that the mere knowledge that negative stereotypes exist about us can impair our performance.

Question 28

Vividness Bias

Answer 28

The tendency to pay more attention to vivid, flashy information than more mundane information that may be at least as important to our decisions.

Question 29

Winner’s Curse

Answer 29

A common pitfall of competitive bidding situations such as auctions. In the typical auction, the winner feels elated about walking away with her prize. Yet there is a strong chance she will realize at a certain point that she significantly overpaid for her prize.

Question 30

ZOPA

Answer 30

The Zone Of Possible Agreement, or the existence of a positive bargaining zone.

Question 31

Authority

Answer 31

Represents the right to seek compliance by others.

Question 32

Bases of Power

Answer 32

The five bases of power are referent, expert, legitimate, reward, and coercive power.

Question 33

Bureaucratic Gamesmanship

Answer 33

A situation where the organizations own policies and procedures provide ammunition for power plays.

Question 34

Coalition

Answer 34

A situation where one unit can effectively increase its power by forming an alliance with other groups that share similar interests.

Question 35

Coercive Power

Answer 35

Involves forcing someone to comply with one’s wishes.

Question 36

Counterpower

Answer 36

Focuses on the extent to which person B has other sources of power to buffer the effects of person A’s power.

Question 37

Expert Power

Answer 37

Occurs when person A gains power because A has knowledge or expertise relevant to person B.

Question 38

Leadership

Answer 38

The ability of one individual to elicit responses from another person that go beyond required or mechanical compliance.

Question 39

Legitimate Power

Answer 39

Exists when person B submits to person A because B feels that A has a right to exert power in a certain domain.

Question 40

Normative Power

Answer 40

Rests on the beliefs of the members in the right of the organization to govern their behavior.

Question 41

Politics

Answer 41

Involves those activities taken within an organization to acquire, develop, and use power and other resources to attain preferred outcomes in a situation in which there is uncertainty and disagreement over choices.

Question 42

Power

Answer 42

The probability that one actor within a social relationship will be in a position to carry out his own will despite resistance.

Question 43

Power Dependencies

Answer 43

A state where all people are not subject to (or dependent upon) the same bases of power.

Question 44

Referent Power

Answer 44

A state where allegiance is based on interpersonal attraction of one individual for another.

Question 45

Resource Dependence

Answer 45

When one subunit of an organization controls a scarce resource that is needed by another subunit, that subunit acquires power.

Question 46

Reward Power

Answer 46

Exists when person A has power over person B because A controls rewards that B wants. These rewards can cover a wide array of possibilities, including pay raises, promotions, desirable job assignments, more responsibility, new equipment, and so forth.

Question 47

Strategic Contingencies

Answer 47

A requirement of the activities of one subunit that is affected by the activities of other subunits.

Question 48

Utilitarian Power

Answer 48

Power based on performance-reward contingencies; for example, a person will comply with a supervisor in order to receive a pay raise or promotion.

Question 49

Work Centrality

Answer 49

The more interconnected subunit A is with other subunits in the organization, the more central it is.

Question 50

Work to Rule

Answer 50

Occurs when employees diligently follow every work rule and policy statement to the letter; this typically results in the organization’s grinding to a halt as a result of the many and often conflicting rules and policy statements.

Question 51

Workflow Immediacy

Answer 51

Relates to the speed and severity with which the work of one subunit affects the final outputs of the organization.

Question 52

Workflow Pervasiveness

Answer 52

The degree to which the actual work of one subunit is connected with the work of the subunits.

Question 53

How do power bases work

in organizational life?

Answer 53

Influencing others is achieved by possessing, or having others believe you possess, resources that they desire and depend upon and for which substitutes are not easily obtained and then establishing behavioral contingencies in the direction of the behaviors you desire to evoke.

• *Power is an interpersonal relationship in which one person or group has the ability to cause another person or**
• *group to take an action that it would not have taken otherwise.**

There are five basic kinds of power: (1) referent, (2) expert, (3) legitimate, (4) reward, and (5) coercive.

• *Depending upon which kind of power is employed, the recipient of a power effort can respond with**
• *commitment, compliance, or resistance.**

Question 54

• *How do you recognize and account for the exercise of counterpower and make appropriate use of**
• *strategic contingencies in interunit or interorganizational relations?**

Answer 54

• Power dependency is the extent to which a person or group is susceptible to an influence attempt. Included
• *here is the notion of counterpower, or the ability of the subordinate to exercise some power and buffer the**
• *influence attempt of another.**
• Common power tactics include controlling access to information, controlling access to persons, the selective
• *use of objective criteria, controlling the agenda, using outside experts, bureaucratic gamesmanship, and**
• *forming coalitions and alliances.**
• The resource dependence model suggests that one unit within an organization has power over another unit
• *when the first unit controls scarce and valued resources needed by the second unit.**
• The strategic contingencies model asserts that one unit has power over another when the first group has the
• *ability to block the second group’s goal attainment—that is, when it controls some strategic contingency**
• *needed by the second group to complete its task.**

Question 55

How do managers cope effectively with organizational politics?

Answer 55

Politics involves those activities taken within an organization to acquire, develop, and use power and other resources to attain preferred outcomes in a situation in which there is uncertainty and disagreement over choices.

Political behavior is more likely to occur when (1) there are ambiguous goals, (2) there is a scarcity of resources, (3) nonroutine technology and a complex external environment are involved, (4) nonprogrammed decisions are being considered, and (5) organizational change is occurring.

Question 56

How do you recognize and limit inappropriate or unethical political behavior where it occurs?

Answer 56

Political behavior can be reduced or minimized in organizations through four techniques: (1) reducing organization uncertainty, (2) reducing interunit competition, (3) breaking up political fiefdoms, and (4) preventing the development of future fiefdoms.

Question 57

Administrative Orbiting

Answer 57

An ineffective strategy for resolving conflict.

Question 58

Affective Conflict

Answer 58

Seen in situations where two individuals simply don’t get along with each other.

Question 59

Assertiveness

Answer 59

Can range from assertive to unassertive on one continuum.

Question 60

BATNA

Answer 60

An acronym popularised by Roger Fisher and William Ury which stands for ‘Best Alternative to a Negotiated Agreement’. BATNA answers the question: ‘What would you do if you weren’t able to agree a deal with your negotiation counterparty?’ Your BATNA is the alternative action you’ll take should your proposed agreement fail to materialize.

Question 61

Behavioral Conflict

Answer 61

Exists when one person or group does something that is unacceptable to others.

Question 62

Character Assassination

Answer 62

An ineffective resolution technique where the person with a conflict attempts to discredit and distance an individual from the others in the group.

Question 63

Cognitive Conflict

Answer 63

Can result when one person or group holds ideas or opinions that are inconsistent with those of others.

Question 64

Conflict

Answer 64

The four types of conflict are goal conflict, cognitive conflict, affective conflict, and behavioral conflict.

Question 65

Constructive Confrontation

Answer 65

A conflict that leads to a positive result.

Question 66

Cooperativeness

Answer 66

The extent to which someone is interested in helping satisfy the opponent’s concerns.

Question 67

Distributive Bargaining

Answer 67

Where the goals of one party are in fundamental and direct conflict with those of the other party. Resources are fixed and limited, and each party wants to maximize its share of these resources.

Question 68

Due Process Nonaction

Answer 68

The strategy of wearing down a dissatisfied employee while at the same time claiming that resolution procedures are open and available. This technique has been used repeatedly in conflicts involving race and sex discrimination.

Question 69

Frustration

Answer 69

May be caused by a wide variety of factors, including disagreement over performance goals, failure to get a promotion or pay raise, a fight over scarce economic resources, new rules or policies, and so forth.

Question 70

Goal Conflict

Answer 70

Can occur when one person or group desires a different outcome than others do. This is simply a clash over whose goals are going to be pursued.

Question 71

Integrative Bargaining

Answer 71

Essentially “win-lose” bargaining where the goals of one party are in fundamental and direct conflict with those of the other party. Resources are fixed and limited, and each party wants to maximize its share of these resources.

Question 72

Intergroup Conflict

Answer 72

Usually involves disagreements between two opposing forces over goals or the sharing of resources.

Question 73

Interorganizational Conflict

Answer 73

Disputes between two companies in the same industry, two companies in different industries or economic sectors, or two or more countries.

Question 74

Interpersonal Conflict

Answer 74

Where two individuals disagree on some matter.

Question 75

Intrapersonal Conflict

Answer 75

A conflict within one person.

Question 76

Jurisdictional Ambiguities

Answer 76

Situations where it is unclear exactly where responsibility for something lies.

Question 77

Negotiation

Answer 77

The process by which individuals or groups attempt to realize their goals by bargaining with another party who has at least some control over goal attainment.

Question 78

Resistance Price

Answer 78

The point beyond which the opponent will not go to reach a settlement.

Question 79

Status Inconsistencies

Answer 79

Situations where some individuals have the opportunity to benefit whereas other employees do not. Consider the effects this can have on the nonmanagers’ view of organizational policies and fairness.

Question 80

Task Interdependencies

Answer 80

The greater the extent of task interdependence among individuals or groups, the greater the likelihood of conflict if different expectations or goals exist among entities, in part because the interdependence makes avoiding the conflict more difficult.

Question 81

Third-Party Consultation

Answer 81

An outside consultant that serves as a go-between and can speak more directly to the issues because she is not a member of either group.

Question 82

How do you recognize and resolve short- and long-term conflicts among group members and among groups?

Answer 82

Conflict is the process by which a person or group feels frustrated in the pursuit of certain goals, plans, or objectives. Conflict may take one of four forms: (1) goal, (2) cognitive, (3) affective, or (4) behavioral. Conflict may occur on several levels, including intrapersonal, interpersonal, intergroup, and interorganizational.

Question 83

How does conflict arise in organizations?

Answer 83

Conflict in organizations can be caused by task interdependencies, status inconsistencies, jurisdictional ambiguities, communication problems, dependence on common resource pools, lack of common performance standards, and individual differences.

A model of the conflict process follows four stages. Conflict originates (stage 1) when an individual or group experiences frustration in the pursuit of important goals. In stage 2, the individual or group attempts to understand the nature of the problem and its causes. In stage 3, efforts are made to change behavioral patterns in such a way that the desired outcome, or stage 4, is achieved.

Question 84

When and how do you negotiate, and how do you achieve a mutually advantageous agreement?

Answer 84

Ineffective conflict resolution strategies include nonaction, administrative orbiting, due process nonaction, secrecy, and character assassination. Strategies for preventing conflict include (1) emphasizing organizationwide goals; (2) providing stable, well-structured tasks; (3) facilitating intergroup communication; and (4) avoiding win-lose situations.

Strategies for reducing conflict include (1) physical separation, (2) use of rules and regulations, (3) limiting intergroup interaction, (4) use of integrators, (5) confrontation and negotiation, (6) third-party consultation, (7) rotation of members, (8) identification of interdependent tasks and superordinate goals, and (9) use of intergroup training.

Negotiation is the process by which individuals and groups attempt to reach their goals by bargaining with others who can help or hinder goal attainment. Negotiation is helpful in three primary instances: (1) a conflict of interest, (2) the absence of clear rules or procedures, and (3) when there is a desire to avoid a fight. Distributive bargaining attempts to resolve a winlose conflict in which resources are limited and each party wishes to maximize its share of these resources. Integrative bargaining occurs when both parties attempt to reach a settlement that benefits both sides in a dispute.

Question 85

How do you recognize and respond to cultural differences in negotiation and bargaining strategies?

Answer 85

A resistance point is the point beyond which an opponent will not go to reach a settlement. Planning for a negotiation session involves (1) understanding the basic nature of the conflict, (2) knowing what the group wants to achieve in the session, (3) selecting a chief negotiator, and (4) understanding one’s opponent.

Cultural differences play a major role in the negotiation process and influence such factors as persuasion techniques, the key characteristics of the negotiators, and communication patterns.