Organizational Behaviour: Conflicts and Negotiations

Definition and Nature of Conflict

• Conflict Defined:

  • Conflict is described as a process that begins at the moment one party perceives that another party has negatively affected, or is about to negatively affected, something the first party cares about.

  • It is identified as the specific point in an ongoing activity when an interaction "crosses over" to become an interparty conflict.

  • Conflict encompasses a wide range of experiences that people encounter within organizations, including:

    • Incompatibility of goals.

    • Differences over interpretations of facts.

    • Disagreements based on behavioral expectations.

Transitions in Conflict Thought: The Three Views

• The Traditional View of Conflict:

  • Timeline: Prevalent in the $1930s$ through the $1940s$.

  • Core Belief: The belief that all conflict is inherently harmful and must be avoided at all costs.

  • Associations: Conflict is discussed using terms such as violence, destruction, and irrationality.

  • Perceived Causes: Within this view, conflict resulted from:

    • Poor communication between parties.

    • A lack of openness.

    • A failure on the part of management to respond to the needs or concerns of employees.

• The Human Relations View of Conflict:

  • Timeline: Prevalent from the late $1940s$ through the mid-$1970s$.

  • Core Belief: The belief that conflict is a natural and inevitable outcome in any group or organizational setting.

  • Key Perspective: Because it is inevitable, it should be accepted rather than suppressed.

• The Interactionist View of Conflict:

  • Timeline: This represents the current view in organizational behavior.

  • Core Belief: The belief that conflict is not only a positive force in a group but that it is absolutely necessary for a group to perform effectively.

  • Functional vs. Dysfunctional Conflict:

    • Functional Conflict: Conflict that supports the goals of the group and improves its overall performance.

    • Dysfunctional Conflict: Conflict that hinders or obstructs group performance.

Specific Types of Conflict within the Interactionist View

• Task Conflict:

  • Definition: Conflicts regarding the content and goals of the work being performed.

  • Status: Low-to-moderate levels of task conflict are categorized as FUNCTIONAL.

• Relationship Conflict:

  • Definition: Conflict based on interpersonal relationships.

  • Status: This type of conflict is almost always DYSFUNCTIONAL because it focuses on personal friction rather than work goals.

• Process Conflict:

  • Definition: Conflict relating to how the work actually gets done (the methods and procedures).

  • Status: Low levels of process conflict are considered FUNCTIONAL.

Styles of Handling Conflict

There are five distinct styles for managing and resolving conflicts based on the levels of assertiveness and cooperativeness:

• Competing:

  • Reflects high assertiveness to get one’s own way.

  • Usage: Should be used when quick, decisive action is vital on important issues or when unpopular actions must be implemented.

• Avoiding:

  • Reflects neither assertiveness nor cooperativeness; it is essentially withdrawing from the conflict.

  • Usage: Appropriate when an issue is trivial, when there is no chance of winning, or when a delay is needed to gather more information.

• Compromising:

  • Involves each party giving up something to reach a solution.

  • Usage: Appropriate when the goals on both sides are of equal importance.

• Accommodating:

  • Reflects a high degree of cooperativeness at the expense of assertiveness.

  • Usage: Works best when people realize they are wrong, or when an issue is significantly more important to the other party than to oneself.

• Collaborating:

  • Focuses on finding a solution where both parties "win."

  • Usage: May require substantial bargaining and negotiation to satisfy the concerns of all involved parties.

Negotiation and Bargaining Strategies

• Definition of Negotiation: A process in which two or more parties exchange goods or services and attempt to agree on the exchange rate for them. It is also referred to as bargaining.

• The Two General Approaches to Bargaining:

  1. Distributive Bargaining: Negotiation that seeks to divide up a fixed amount of resources. It is characterized as a win-lose situation.

  2. Integrative Bargaining: Negotiation that seeks one or more settlements that can create a win-win solution.

• Comparative Table: Distributive vs. Integrative Bargaining:

The Negotiation Process and BATNA

• BATNA Concept:

  • Stands for Best Alternative To a Negotiated Agreement.

  • Definition: The lowest acceptable value (outcome) to an individual for a negotiated agreement.

  • Function: It serves as the "Bottom Line" for negotiations; if the current negotiation falls below the BATNA, the party should walk away.

Factors Influencing Negotiation Effectiveness

Individual differences play a significant role in how effective a person is at negotiating:

• Personality Traits:

  • Extroverts and agreeable people tend to be weaker at distributive negotiation because they share too much or care too much about the relationship.

  • Disagreeable introverts are considered the best at distributive bargaining.

• Mood and Emotion:

  • The ability to show anger can be beneficial particularly in distributive bargaining.

  • Positive moods and emotions are helpful for fostering the creativity needed in integrative bargaining.

• Gender:

  • Men and women generally negotiate using the same methods, but they may experience different outcomes due to societal perceptions or situational factors.

• Culture:

  • Negotiation style is influenced by cultural factors such as Power Distance and the level of Trust established in the culture.

  • While styles differ, some specific negotiation tactics consistently yield superior outcomes across different countries.

Third-Party Negotiations

When parties cannot reach an agreement themselves, four types of neutral third parties can assist:

• Mediator: A neutral third party who facilitates a negotiated solution by using analysis, advising, and providing suggestions for alternatives.

• Arbitrator: A third party who possesses the authority to dictate an agreement. The resolution is usually binding.

• Conciliator: A trusted third party who provides an informal communication link between the negotiator and the opponent to keep lines of communication open.

• Consultant: An impartial third party skilled in conflict management. They attempt to facilitate creative problem solving through communication and deep analysis of the situation.

Managerial Implications

• Performance Assumption: Many people incorrectly assume that conflict always lowers group and organizational performance.

• Constructive vs. Destructive: In reality, conflict can be either constructive (Functional) or destructive (Dysfunctional) to the functioning of a group or unit. Managers must determine the nature of the conflict rather than simply trying to eliminate it.

Questions & Discussion Activities

• In-Class Activity (Conflict Examples): Students are tasked to find $05$ examples each for functional and dysfunctional conflicts.

• Case Study (Conflict Styles): Refer to the case study provided in Nlearn. Students must explain how to solve the case using specific conflict resolution styles (Competing, Avoiding, Compromising, Accommodating, Collaborating).

• Individual Activity (Third Parties): Students are tasked to find real-world examples in the business environment for each type of third-party involvement in negotiations (Mediator, Arbitrator, Conciliator, Consultant) and share these with the class.