Chapter # 14: Conflict and Negotiation

1. Define Conflict
Exam Q: Define Conflict and explain the roles and functions of third party
negotiations? (Three Times)
Conflict is a process that begins when one party perceives that another
party has negatively affected, or is about to negatively affects, something
that the first party cares about.
Conflict primarily deals with perception. If nobody thinks there is conflict,
then no conflict exists.
Conflict can be experienced in an organization through many different
avenues. It can be that:
Incompatibility of goals.
Difference over interpretations of facts.
Disagreements based on the behavioral expectations.
Transitions in Conflict Thought
2. Differentiate among the traditional, interactionist, and managed-conflict
views of conflict.
The following are the viewpoints about the conflict:
I.
II.
III.

The traditional view of Conflict

The Interactionist View of Conflict
The Resolution Focused View of Conflict

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I.

The traditional view of Conflict

The traditional view of conflict believes that conflict is bad or harmful and it
should be avoided as much as possible.

It was viewed negatively and discussed with such terms as violence, destruction,
irrationality to reinforce its negative connotation.

This view was more prevalent in the 1930s and 40s than it is today.
Conflict was a dysfunctional outcome resulting from:

II.

Poor communication,
Lack of openness,
Trust between people or
Failure to respond to employee needs and aspirations

The Interactionist View of Conflict

The current view on conflict is that:
Conflict is a positive force.
Conflict is necessary for a group to perform effectively.

Harmonious, peaceful, tranquil, and cooperative group become static, apathetic,

and un responsive for change and innovation.
Following are the two forms of Interactionist Conflict:

a) Functional Conflict
b) Dysfunctional Conflict
a) Functional Conflict
Functional Conflict is conflict that supports the goals of the group and
improves its performance
b) Dysfunctional Conflict
A conflict that hinders group performance is a destructive or dysfunctional
conflict.
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 This type of conflict should be avoided, controlled, or minimized as much as

possible.
There are many types of interactionist conflict including:
a) Task Conflict
b) Relationship Conflict, and
c) Process Conflict.
a) Task Conflict
Task conflict arises when there is conflict over the content and/or goals of
the work.
If this type of conflict exists at low to moderate levels, then this is a
functional conflict that can help individuals seek clarification or new ideas
on how to accomplish their goals.
b) Relationship Conflict
Relationship conflict is based on problems between individuals
(interpersonal relationship) and is almost always dysfunctional.
c) Process Conflict.
Process conflict occurs when there is disagreement on how the work gets
done.
Low levels of process conflict represent functional conflict.
III.

The Resolution Focused View of Conflict

The following steps are involved in the resolution focused view of conflict:
Preparing people for conflict.
Developing conflict resolution strategies.
Facilitating open discussion.

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3. The Conflict Process

The conflict process has five stages:
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.

Potential opposition or incompatibility,

Cognition and personalization,
Intentions,
Behavior, and
Outcomes

I.

Potential opposition or incompatibility,

Stage one of the conflict process is potential opposition or incompatibility.

In this stage there are three main conditions that can cause conflict to arise.
They are:
a) Communication,
b) Structure, and
c) Personal variables.
a) Communication,
Following communication factors will cause conflicts:
Semantic difficulties,
Misunderstandings,
over communication and noise

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b) Structure
Following communication factors will cause conflicts:

Size and specialization of jobs

Jurisdictional clarity/ambiguity
Member/goal incompatibility
Leadership styles (close or participative)
Reward systems (win-lose)
Dependence/interdependence of groups

c) Personal variables.
Personal variables will cause conflicts when:
There are different value systems represented and
Personality types are at odds.

II.

Cognition and personalization,

Stage two looks at the recognition or cognition of the conflict and the
personalization or the emotional part of the conflict.
There must be an awareness of conflict existence, defined as perceived
conflict.
Once people are aware of the conflict, emotions are expressed that can
impact the outcome of the conflict this is defined as felt conflict.
Emotions can include anxiety, tension, frustration, or hostility.

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III.

Intentions,
Stage three starts to look at the intentions of the individuals involved.
Intentions intervene between peoples perception and emotions and their
obvious behavior.
Primary conflict handling intentions has been identified by using two
dimensions Cooperativeness and Assertiveness, which consist of total five
conflict handing intentions.

i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
i.

Competing
Collaborating
Avoiding
Accommodating
Compromising
Competing
Competing is when one person seeks to satisfy his or her own interest
regardless of the impact on the other parties to the conflict, that person is
competing.

ii.

Collaborating
Collaborating is when each desire to fully satisfy the concerns of all parties
in conflict, there is cooperation and a search for a mutually beneficial
outcome.

iii.

Avoiding
Avoiding is when a person may recognize a conflict exists and want to
withdraw from or suppress it.

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iv.

Accommodating
Accommodating is when A party who seeks to appease an opponent may
be willing to place the opponents interest above his or her own, sacrificing
to maintain the relationship.

v.

Compromising
Compromising is when there is no clear winner and loser.
Rather there is a willingness to ration the object of the conflict and accept a
solution that provides incomplete satisfaction of both parties concerns.

IV.

Behavior

V.

When most people think of conflict situations, they tend to focus on stage IV
(behavior) because this is where conflicts become visible.
The behavior stage includes the statements, actions and reactions made by the
conflicting parties, usually as overt (obvious) attempts to implement their own
intentions.

Outcomes

Stage five looks at the outcomes of conflict resolution. Following are the two
types of outcomes:
a) Functional Outcome
b) Dysfunctional Outcome

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a) Functional Outcome
Functional Outcomes include:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
vi.

Increased group performance

Improved quality of decisions
Stimulation of creativity and innovation
Encouragement of interest and curiosity
Provision of a medium for problem solving
Creation of an environment for self-evaluation and change

b) Dysfunctional Outcome
Dysfunctional Outcomes include:
i.
ii.
iii.
iv.
v.
vi.

Destruction of the group

Reduced group effectiveness
Reduced group cohesiveness
Retarded communication
Infighting among group members overcomes group goals
Reduce satisfaction and trust

Creating Functional Conflict

Reward and dissent and punish the conflict avoiders.
Conflict Resolve
Discuss differences openly and manage conflicts when it arises.

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4. Apply the five steps of the negotiation process

Negotiation process is viewed as made up of five (5) steps.
I.
II.
III.
IV.
V.

Preparing and planning

Definition of ground rules
Clarification and justification
Bargaining and problem solving
Closure and implementation

I.

II.

Preparing and planning

Before starting negotiation you need to do your homework, like
What is the nature of the conflict?
What is the history leading up to this negotiation?
Whos involved?
What are their perceptions of the conflict?
What do you want from the negotiation?
What are your goals?
You also want to assess:
What you think are the other partys goals.
What are they likely to ask/request?
How entrenched is their position likely to be?
Relationships will change as a result of a negotiation, so thats another
outcome to take into consideration.
Once you have gathered your information, use it to develop a strategy.
Definition of ground rules
Once done with planning and developed a strategy, youre ready to begin
defining with the other party the ground rules and procedures of the
negotiation itself like:
Who will do the negotiating?
Where will it take place?
Time Constraints
What issues and procedure for impasse (deadlock or bottleneck)

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III.

Clarification and justification

When you have exchanged initial positions, both you and the other party
will explain, amplify, clarify, boost, and justify your original demands.
This neednt be confrontational.
Rather its an opportunity for educating and informing each other on the
issues, why they are important, and how you arrived at your initial
demands.

IV.

Bargaining and problem solving

The essence of the negotiation process is the actual give-and takes in trying
to hash out an agreement.
This is where both parties will undoubtedly need to make concessions.

V.

Closure and implementation

The final step in the negotiation process is formalizing the agreement that
has been worked out and developing any procedures necessary for
implementation and monitoring.
For most cases, however, closure of the negotiation process is nothing
more formal than a handshake.

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5. Show how individual differences influence negotiations

Following factors influence how effectively individuals negotiate;

I.
II.
III.

Personality
Mood/ Emotions
Gender

I.

Personality
Personality traits will impact outcomes as extroverts tend to be weaker at
negotiation because they will want people to like them.
Disagreeable introvert is best
Intelligence is not an indicator of effective negotiation skills.

II.

Mood/ Emotions
Mood and emotion can impact negotiations as anger is often an effective
tool in distributive bargaining,
Whereas positive moods are helpful in integrative bargaining situations.

III.

Gender.
Men and women negotiate the same way, but may experience different
outcomes.
Women and men take on gender stereotypes in negotiations: tender and
tough.
Women are less likely to negotiate.
However men have been found to negotiate better outcomes than women,
although the difference is relatively small.

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6. Assess the roles and functions of third-party negotiations

Exam Q: What is negotiation? Explain the roles and functions of third
party negotiations (Two Times).
Exam Q: Never Negotiate out of fear and never fear to negotiate. Explain
this philosophy and asses the roles of third party negotiations? (Two
Times)
7. Define Negotiation
Negotiation or bargaining is the process when two or more parties have to
allocate resources.
When two or more parties exchange goods or services and attempt to
agree on exchange rate for them.
There are two strategies of bargaining:
a) Distributive Bargaining
b) Integrative Bargaining
a)

Distributive Bargaining
Distributive Bargaining works under zero sum condition.
Any gain that one party makes is the loss of the other party.
Distributive bargaining seeks to divide up a fixed amount of resources and
often creates a win/lose situation.

b) Integrative Bargaining
Integrative bargaining seeks one or more settlements that can create a winwin situation for all parties involved.
8. Contrast Distributive versus Integrative Bargaining
Bargaining Characteristic

Distributive
Bargaining

Integrative Bargaining

Goal

Get all the pie you can

Expand the pie

Motivation

Win-Lose

Win-Win

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Focus

Positions

Interests

Information Sharing

Low

High

Duration of Relationships

Short-Term

Long-Term

Roles and Functions of Negotiations

Occasionally individuals or group representatives reach a stalemate
(impasse or deadlock) and are unable to resolve their differences through
direct negotiations.
In such case, they may turn to a third party to help them find a solution.
There are four basic third-party roles :
I.
II.
III.
IV.
I.

Mediator
Arbitrator
Conciliator
Consultant
Mediator

A mediator is neutral third party who facilitates a negotiated solution by

using reasoning, persuasion, and suggestions for alternatives.
Mediators are widely used in labor-management negotiations and in civil
court disputes.
Mediation is most effective under moderate level of conflict.
II.

Arbitrator
An Arbitrator is a third party with the authority to dictate an agreement.
Arbitration can be voluntary or compulsory.
The big plus of arbitration over mediation is that it always results in a
settlement.

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III.

Conciliator
A conciliator is trusted third party who provides an informal
communication link between negotiator and the opponent.
Conciliation is used extensively in international, labor, family, and
community disputes.
Comparing its effectiveness to mediation has proven difficult.
Conciliators engage in fact finding, interpreting messages, and persuading
disputants to develop agreements.

IV.

Consultant
A consultant is a skilled and impartial third party who attempts to facilitate
problem solving through communication and analysis, aided by knowledge
of conflict management.
In contrast to the previous roles, the consultants role is to improve
relations between the conflicting parties so that they can reach a
settlement themselves.
This approach has a longer-term focus: to build new and positive
perceptions and attitudes between the conflicting parties.

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