Conflict and Negotiation Week 9 2005EHR

Lecture objectives Define conflict Describe the two forms and three types of conflict Outline the conflict process Define negotiation and contrast distributive and integrative bargaining Discuss five steps in negotiation process

What is conflict? Process that begins when one party perceives another party has negatively affected, or is about to negatively affect, something that the first party cares about Requires: perception of conflict, interaction, and opposition/incompatibility (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 3

What is conflict (continued)? Encompasses wide range of conflicts that people experience in organisations Incompatibility of goals Differences over interpretations of facts Disagreements based on behavioural expectations Full range of conflict levels – from overt and violent acts to subtle disagreements (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 4

What is conflict? (cont’d) Traditional View (1930s -1940s) All conflict is harmful and must be avoided Dysfunctional, resulting from: poor communication, lack of openness, failure to respond to employee needs Interactionist/Contemporary View Conflict may be necessary for groups to perform effectively; lack of conflict can result in apathy and stifle innovation Conflict probably inevitable in most organisations and minimal level can help keep group viable Acknowledges not all conflict is good: functional versus dysfunctional conflict Managed conflict focus on productive conflict resolution Encouraging limited levels of “work-focused” conflict Finding constructive methods for resolving conflict productively (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 5

(c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. Forms of conflict Functional conflict Conflict that supports group goals and improves performance Dysfunctional conflict Conflict that hinders group performance (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 6

Forms of conflict (cont’d) Encourages managers to attain an optimal level of functional conflict

Types of interactionist conflict Task Conflict Conflict over work content and goals of work Low-to-moderate levels are FUNCTIONAL Process Conflict Conflict over how work gets done Low levels are FUNCTIONAL Relationship Conflict Conflict based on interpersonal relationships Almost always DYSFUNCTIONAL Only in specific circumstances! (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 8

Conflict process (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 9

Stage I: Opposition/Incompatibility Communication Semantic difficulties Misunderstandings Noise in the communication channel Individual variables Personality Emotions Values Structure Size Specialisation of jobs Jurisdictional clarity Member–goal compatibility Leadership styles Reward systems (win–lose) Degree of dependence between groups (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 10

Stage II: Cognition & personalisation Important stage for two reasons: Conflict is defined Perceived Conflict – awareness by one or more parties of conditions that create opportunities for conflict to arise Emotions are expressed that impact strongly on eventual outcome Felt Conflict – emotional involvement in conflict creating anxiety, tenseness, frustration, or hostility (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 11

Stage III: Intentions Intentions Decisions to act in given way A distinct stage because a person has to infer the other’s intent to know how to respond to his or her behavior. Conflicts often escalate because one party attributes the wrong intentions to the other. Note: behaviour does not always accurately reflect intent Dimensions of conflict-handling intentions Cooperativeness Attempting to satisfy the other party’s concerns Assertiveness Attempting to satisfy one’s own concerns (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 12

Dimensions of conflict-handling intentions

Stage IV: Behaviour Includes the statements, actions and reactions made by the conflicting parties, usually as overt attempts to implement their own intentions. Stage IV is a dynamic process of interaction Conflict-intensity continuum: (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 14

Conflict management techniques Conflict Resolution Conflict Stimulation Problem solving Superordinate goals Expansion of resources Avoidance Smoothing Compromise Authoritative command Altering human variables Altering structural variables Communication Bringing in outsiders Restructuring organization Appointing devil’s advocate Resolution and stimulation techniques to achieve desired level of conflict (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 15

Stage V: Outcomes Functional outcomes: outcomes of conflict that supports group goals and improves performance: Increased group performance Improved quality of decisions Stimulation of creativity and innovation Encouragement of interest and curiosity Provision of medium for problem solving Creation of environment for self-evaluation and change (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 16

Stage V: Outcomes Dysfunctional outcomes: outcomes of conflict that hinder group performance: Development of discontent Reduced group effectiveness Diminished communication Reduced group cohesiveness Infighting among group members overcomes group goals (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 17

Negotiation Negotiation (Bargaining) is a process in which two or more parties exchange goods or services and attempt to agree on an exchange rate Also, when two or more conflicting parties attempt to resolve their divergent goals by redefining the terms of their interdependence Two general approaches Distributive bargaining – negotiation that seeks to divide up a fixed amount of resources; a win-lose situation Integrative bargaining – negotiation that seeks one or more settlements that can create win-win solutions (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 18

Distributive versus Integrative (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 19

The negotiation process A model of the negotiation process views negotiation as comprising five steps: Preparation and planning: Assess your goals and the other party’s goals. Definition of ground rules: deciding where, when, how and then exchanging initial proposals and demands. Clarification and justification: a process of clarifying and justifying your original demands. Bargaining and problem solving: the give-and-take to work out an agreement Closure and implementation: formalising the agreement. (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 20

Negotiation process model BATNA Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement Lowest acceptable value (outcome) to an individual for a negotiated agreement ‘Bottom line’ for negotiations (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 21

Individual differences and negotiation effectiveness Personality traits Extroverts and agreeable people weaker at distributive negotiation; disagreeable introvert is best Intelligence is a weak indicator of effectiveness Mood and emotion Ability to show anger helps in distributive bargaining – for people with greater power Anxiety is related to poorer outcomes Positive moods and emotions help integrative bargaining Gender Men and women negotiate same way but may experience different outcomes Women and men take on gender stereotypes in negotiations:: women tender / men tough Women less likely to negotiate (c) 2008 Prentice-Hall, All rights reserved. 22

Situational considerations The location There is a home ground advantage The physical setting Sitting face to face is more likely to result in a distributive (win-lose) situation Sitting around the table may support an integrative approach Time passage and deadlines The more time people invest, the stronger their commitment to reaching an agreement will be (escalation of commitment) Audience characteristics Spectators increase the use of distributive bargaining tactics

Summary Low to Moderate levels of task and process conflict may help improve performance Conflict is represented in a five stage model: . Stage 1 - Potential opposition, Stage 2 - Cognition and personalisation; Stage 3 - Intentions; Stage 4 - Behaviour and stage 5 - outcomes. Negotiation (or bargaining) the process through which two or more parties seek agreement on the rate of exchange between goods and services. Five steps in negotiating include: 1. Preparing and planning, 2. Definition of ground rules, 3. Clarification and justification, 4. Bargaining and problem solving, 5. Closure and implementation

Next week Week 10 Lecture Organisational Culture Week 10 Workshop Conflict