Managing Conflict: Personal Approaches

Conflict, whether in the form of disagreements between intimate partners and friends or on the larger scale of hostilities between countries or interest groups, is challenging and requires careful strategies for management. Communication theorists such as Trenholm and Jensen (352) note that conflicts and differences of opinion are normal elements of all communication contexts. The approach taken to managing conflict and diffusing it may vary from individual to individual but at its heart, conflict management involves the art of negotiation which seeks to diffuse tension, to reach a decision that is mutually acceptable to the parties, and to prevent future disputes covering the same issues. This essay will present a personal assessment of conflict management approaches, using examples to illustrate a style of accommodation that seeks to create a win-win-situation for all concerned.

The five conflict management styles commonly identified in the literature are the competing, avoiding, collaborating or problem-solving, compromising, and accommodating styles (Conflict Management Styles, 1). Each of these approaches, according to Barker and Barker (170) can be useful in managing interpersonal conflicts effectively and efficiently. Each contains an element of rationality and provides an opportunity for the parties to the conflict to express their opinions and, hopefully, arrive at a decision.

However, the competing and problem-solving or collaborating styles have been

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nflict and, as a result, fights break out and serious harm can be inflicted on individuals. While in general I would argue that withdrawing or avoiding conflicts does not result in any meaningful resolution of the underlying problem, there are certainly times when a speedy withdrawal from a dangerous situation makes sense. At one point during high school, I was challenged by another student who felt that I had behaved disrespectfully toward him. I immediately recognized that he was ready to become physically violent and I simply chose to withdraw, avoiding any further tension by acknowledging that he was correct and I offered an apology. This made it possible for him to "save face" by accepting my apology and feeling that he had "won" the dispute. Barker and Barker (171) assert that face-saving is important in situations when an individual feels that his or her reputation, ego, or status is threatened by another. Another conflict resolution or management style is competing, which is possibly the most aggressive or assertive and least cooperative style of coping with disputes (Conflict Management Style, 1). The emphasis in this approach is on satisfying one's own concerns without regard for the concerns of the other.

Category: People - M