Stages of Conflict Management
Introduction
In the contemporary workplace, communication plays an important role in an efficient administration since it encourages co-operation, knowledge sharing, and a feeling of a sense of a common purpose. Nonetheless, communication brings increasing interpersonal relationships, an unwanted and, in most cases, unmanaged side effects, which are referred to as conflicts.
Managing conflict focuses on maintaining conflict at the right level in order to assist the organizational departments, teams or groups working together to reach their goals. Managing conflict does not imply completely eradicating conflict or conflict reduction (Miller, 2011).
The fundamental process of conflict management is the selection of the aspired levels of conflicts. These aspired levels of conflicts vary widely and depend on the perceived conflict requirements by the managers of various personnel (Miller, 2011).
The stages of conflict management include diagnosis of the problem, problem statement, knowing both parties perceptions or viewpoints/understanding, mediation, brainstorming of alternative solutions, and identification of (an) agreed on solution(s) (Rout & Omiko, 2007). These stages of conflict management are briefly described below.
Diagnosis of the Problem
In this stage of conflict management, the mediator listens to both parties who are involved in conflict with the intention of understanding and determining the existence of a genuine conflict, and not just an imagined one (Rout & Omiko, 2007).
Problem Statement
After recognizing that actually the problem really exists, the mediator now attempts to represent the problem to both parties involved in a non-defensive and direct manner. In other words, in this stage the mediator ensures that parties involved in the conflict actually understand the problem. Besides, the second stage is meant to ensure that the mediator evaluates and sees the level of understanding of both parties in regard to the presence of the conflict,
In the contemporary workplace, communication plays an important role in an efficient administration since it encourages co-operation, knowledge sharing, and a feeling of a sense of a common purpose. Nonetheless, communication brings increasing interpersonal relationships, an unwanted and, in most cases, unmanaged side effects, which are referred to as conflicts.
Managing conflict focuses on maintaining conflict at the right level in order to assist the organizational departments, teams or groups working together to reach their goals. Managing conflict does not imply completely eradicating conflict or conflict reduction (Miller, 2011).
The fundamental process of conflict management is the selection of the aspired levels of conflicts. These aspired levels of conflicts vary widely and depend on the perceived conflict requirements by the managers of various personnel (Miller, 2011).
The stages of conflict management include diagnosis of the problem, problem statement, knowing both parties perceptions or viewpoints/understanding, mediation, brainstorming of alternative solutions, and identification of (an) agreed on solution(s) (Rout & Omiko, 2007). These stages of conflict management are briefly described below.
Diagnosis of the Problem
In this stage of conflict management, the mediator listens to both parties who are involved in conflict with the intention of understanding and determining the existence of a genuine conflict, and not just an imagined one (Rout & Omiko, 2007).
Problem Statement
After recognizing that actually the problem really exists, the mediator now attempts to represent the problem to both parties involved in a non-defensive and direct manner. In other words, in this stage the mediator ensures that parties involved in the conflict actually understand the problem. Besides, the second stage is meant to ensure that the mediator evaluates and sees the level of understanding of both parties in regard to the presence of the conflict,
References: Miller, K. (2011). Organizational Communication: Approaches and Processes. New York: Cengage Learning. Pammer, W. J. (2003). Handbook of Conflict Management. New York: CRC Press. Rout, E. L., & Omiko, N. (2007). Corporate Conflict Management: Concepts and Skills. New Delhi: PHI Learning Pvt. Ltd. Zartman, W. (2008). Negotiation and conflict management: essays on theory and practice. London: Routledge.