Discussion Conflict Management Style
After reviewing the five different types of Conflict Management Styles give an example of when you have experienced one of the styles within a group.
How did it make you feel? What was your attitude towards the leader? What would you have done differently as a team member?
1. Avoiding: very little interest in the group or the goals, little interest in collaboration and not interested in negotiating. Sometimes called the "ostrich with its head in the sand"
2. Accommodating style: results in maximum cooperation but usually is the result of low self-interest and minimal realization.
3. Competitive style: a style that could occur that would lead to little or no results for the team or anyone involved.
4. Compromising style: occurs between groups, team members or organizations. Negotiation skills are to be used to try to create results and communication.
5. Collaborative style: this style maximizes everyone personal interest and communications.
ADDTIONAL Support Info:
Most teams will have some type of conflict during the duration that the team is in place. The conflict can take place within the group as a whole or between specific team members. The conflict may be a small disagreement or a screaming match or team members walking out on the project. No matter what level of conflict occurs strategies need to be in place to manage the individuals and/or team.
Dealing with Conflict
Research indicates that there are two dimensions when dealing with conflict cooperativeness and assertiveness. Cooperativeness means that an individual/team member concerns are higher for others/team members than themselves and assertiveness deals with individuals that are focused only on themselves. Within the dimensions there are five approaches that include the following:
- Collaborating - assertive and cooperative, looking for a win-win situation.
- Competing - assertive and uncooperative, also called dominating
- Accommodating - unassertive and cooperative, also called obliging
- Avoiding - unassertive and uncooperative, also called inaction or the ignoring style
- Compromising - mid-range on both assertiveness and cooperativeness
Team members will approach conflict from one of the dimensions. Leaders can provide training to team members so they recognize and deal with different team members approaches and solve conflict without the leader's intervention. If the team cannot resolve a conflict leadership must step in and decide what action/s that needs to be taken.
Remember, most individuals on a team want to avoid conflict and may settle on issues when they don't fully agree. This will have a long term effect on the team and individuals and if not resolved the goals created will not be as effective for the organization as it could be.
Leaders Dealing with Team Conflict
Leading a team can be difficult at times due to conflicts within the team or between team members. Your ability to be able to analyze team conflicts and/or team individual conflicts will be invaluable to your success. Two of the biggest reasons for a dysfunctional team are the lack of trust between members and individual and/or group performance feedback given by leadership is perceived as being unfair. Creating team activities to create trust and a system that ensures fairness; constant and timely performance feedback for individual member's and overall team feedback are a few key strategies for dealing with conflict.
Think about being on a team and what made you respect other members and the leader:
- Did positive team feedback enforce trust among team members?
- Did effective performance by a team member build trust and respect?
- Did the leader's effective and timely performance feedback create trust and respect for the leader?
Tips to remember when building a team and/or when leading a team during conflict:
- Know your team members' abilities
- Understand team members role preferences
- Training of team members about team dynamics
- Communicate constantly
- Discipline; team leaders must be able to issue disciplinary actions
- Motivate your team
REF: Thompson, L. (07/2013). Making the Team, 5th Edition. [Bookshelf Ambassadored]. Retrieved from
https://ambassadored.vitalsource.com/#/books/9781323113950/