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A Study on the Mental Setup of the Working People in Managing Conflict Through Soft Skills with Special Reference to Gender

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A Study on the Mental Setup of the Working People in Managing Conflict Through Soft Skills with Special Reference to Gender
A Study on the Mental Setup of the Working People in Managing Conflict through Soft Skills with special reference to Gender
Senthil K. Nathan & Dr. Sw. Rajamanoharane Department of Management Studies J.J. College of Engineering and Technology Tiruchirappalli 620 001, Tamil Nadu, India senknat@yahoo.com, swrksr@gmail.com

Abstract The term Conflict is an inseparable one in everybody’s life. Conflict is defined as a struggle or contest between people with opposing needs, ideas, beliefs, values, or goals. Workplaces are frequently characterized by a variety of destructive conflicts, the intensity of the damage depends on the nature and duration of the conflict. Conflict occurring at a personal level may cause severe damage to the organisation also. Interpersonal skills play a vital role in managing conflict. Conflict on teams is inevitable; however, the results of conflict are not predetermined. Conflict might escalate and lead to nonproductive results, or conflict can be beneficially resolved and lead to quality final products. This paper attempts to explain the concepts of Managing Conflict through Soft Skills among the working people and the differences in dealing Conflict with or without gender bias. Keywords: Conflict Management, Working people, Gender, Soft Skills, Interpersonal Skill 1. Introduction Conflict According to Harigopal K. [1] Conflict is an inevitable part of human existence. Conflict occurs within an individual (intra-individual), between individuals (inter-individual), among and within groups of individuals (inter – and intra-group), and between societies and nations (macro level). Conflict is as old as human existence. Conflicts, at the macro level, have destroyed societies and also have created them. Inappropriately managed conflicts at the organizational and individual levels have resulted in dysfunctional consequences for both, while effectively managed conflicts have contributed to mutual survival, growth and well-being. Types of Conflict



References: [1] Harigopal K. (1995) Conflict Management: Managing Interpersonal Conflict, New Delhi: Oxford IBH Publishing [2] K.A. Jeh. “Multimethod Examination of the Benefits and Detriments of Intragroup conflict, “Administrative Science Quarterly, June 1995, pp. 256-82; ;K.A. Jehn, “A Qualitative Analysis of conflict Types and dimensions in Organisational Groups, “Administrative Science Quartely, September 1997, pp. 530-57; and K.A. Jehn, “Affective and Congnitve Conflict in Work Groups; Increasing Performance Through Value-Based Intragroup Conflict,” in C. Dedreu and E. Van deVilert (eds.) Using Conflict in Organisations, pp. 87100 [3] Thomas K.W. (1976). Conflict and Conflict Management. In M. Dunnette (Ed.), Handbook of Industrial and Organisational Psychology (pp. 889-933). Chicago: Rand McNally [4] S.A.W. Bukari, “Soft Skills – Competencies for Success”, Sanjee Book House. [5] “Handbook on Communication Skills for Public Managers. Centre for Good Governance. [6] Murphy, B.C. and Eisenberg, N. (1996). Provoked by peer: Children’s anger-related responses and their relations to social functioning. Merrill-Palmer Quarterly, 42(1), 103124. [7] Martin, G.E. and Bergamn, T.J. (1669). The dynamics of behaviourial response to conflict in the workplace. Journal of Occupational and Organisational Psychology, 69(4), 377-388. [8] Kluwer, E.S., de Dreu, C.K.W. and Buunk, B.P. (1998). Conflict in intimate vs. nonintimate relationships: When gender role sterotyping overrides biased self-other judgement. Journal of Social and Personal Relationships, 15(5), 637-650. [9] Tatjana Medic and Mladen Stojadinovic, “Towards reconciliation – dealing with the past or leaving it behind?” in TransConflict Serbia conference, January 11, 2012 [10] Brewer, N., Mitchell, P., & Weber, N. (2002). Gender role, organizational status and conflict management styles, International Journal of Conflict Management, 13(1), 78-94 [11] Gayle, B.M., et al. (1991). Sex differences in conflict management strategy selection: A meta-analytic review (Report No.CS 507-527). Paper presented at the annual meeting of the International Communication Association, Chicago, Illinois. [12] Laursen, B. (1993). Conflict management among close friends. In B. Laursen (Ed.), Close friendships in adolescence: New directions for child development (pp. 49-54) [13] Ephross, R.H. & Vassil, T.V. (1993). The rediscovery of real world groups. In Social work with groups: Expanding horizons. Binghamton, NY: Haworth Press. [14] Assael, H. (1969). Constructive role of interorganisational conflict, Administrative Science Quarerly, 14: 573-582. [15] Peterson, D.R. (1983). Conflict (pp 361-396) in H.H. Kelley, E. Berschied, A. Christensen, J.H. Harvery, T.L. Huston, G. Levinger, E. McClintock, L.A. Peplau & D.R. Peterson (Eds.), Close relationships. New York: W.H. Freeman. [16] Borisoff, D., and D.A. Victor. Conflict Management: A Communication Skills Approach. 2nd Ed., Boston: Allyn and Bacon, 1998. [17] Terri Rocker. “How to resolve conflict with an angry coworker.” http://www.ehow.com/how_4546513_resolve-conflict-angry-coworker.html#ixzz1rSslGT8g [18] Dr. Sharma S. Mantha and M. Sivaramakrishna, “Handbook on Conflict Management Skills for Public Managers. Centre for Good Governance. [19] The W.K. Kellogg Foundation, University of Illinois Extn. and the College of Agricultural, Consumer and Environmental Sciences, University of Illinois at Urbana-Champaign.

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