UNIVERSITY OF MAKATI

J. P. Rizal Ext., West Rembo, Makati City

COLLEGE OF BUSINESS AND FINANCIAL SCIENCE

Department of Human Resource Management

Course Title Title

Module No. 14 CONFLICT AND

NEGOTIATION IN
HUMAN BEHAVIOR IN
ORGANIZATION ORGANIZATION

Uploaded by: Group 4

Timeframe How long should the student take this module? Students are
required to complete all the activities, assignments and
assessment of this module in one week.

How to Complete this Students are required to do the following to complete this
module? module:
1. Complete the reading assignment on the given lecture.
2. Watch the video presentation lecture on Conflict and
Negotiation in Organization
3. Participate in this week’s discussion about the topic
and video they have seen.

Teaching Strategies PowerPoint presentation, video presentation, video

conferencing,

When people work together in organizational settings, myriad consequences can

result. A possible outcome that occurs with regularity is conflict, the subject of this
chapter. We begin with a discussion of the nature of conflict. We then examine its most
common forms and the things that cause it in the first place. We then discuss reactions to
conflict and how it can be managed. We conclude with discussions of a related
organizational process, negotiation.

At the end of this module, the student should be able to:

1. Define and discuss the nature of conflict in organization,
2. Identify and describe the common forms and causes of conflict, Discuss the most
frequent reactions to conflict in organizations,
3. Apply the six structural approaches to conflict management and describe the three
types of third party dispute resolution, and
4. Describe the bargaining zone model and outline strategies that skilled negotiations
use to claim value and create value in negotiations
 CONFLICT AND NEGOTIATION IN ORGANIZATION

I. THE NATURE OF CONFLICT IN ORGANIZATIONS

Conflict
- A process resulting in the perceptions of two parties that they are working in
opposition to each other in ways that result in feelings of discomfort and/or
animosity.
- The parties have to actually perceive it to exist in order for conflict to be real.
- Discomfort or animosity must occur in order for the conflict to be real.
- Parties involved in conflict may be individuals, groups, and/or organizations.
- Conflict may exist across levels and may also result from the anticipation of
future problems.
- Although conflict is often considered harmful, and thus something to avoid,
it can also have some benefits.
- A total absence of conflict can lead to apathy and lethargy.
- A moderate degree of focused conflict can stimulate new ideas, promote
healthy competition, and energize behavior.
- In many cases, the impact of conflict on performance may take the form
shown below:

II. COMMON FORMS AND CAUSES OF CONFLICTS

Conflict may take a number of forms. In addition, it may be caused by a wide array
of factors in an organization.

Common Forms Of Conflicts

● Task Conflict
● Process Conflict
 ● Relationship Conflict

Task Conflict
- Refers to conflict regarding the goals and content of work.
- To the extent that their differences lead to disagreements over substantive
issues, it represents task conflict.

Process Conflict
- Occurs when the parties agree on the goals and content of work, but
disagree on how to achieve the goals and actually do the work
- While they share the same goals, they see different processes being the best
way to achieve those goals.

Relationship Conflict
- Occurs when the parties have interpersonal issues.
- While conflict between these two individuals is not certain, there is a
reasonable likelihood that they will at least occasionally let each other know
that they value different things.

Legal Conflict
- At a different level, level conflict may arise when there are differences in
perceptions between organizations.

Causes Of Conflict
● Interpersonal
● Intergroup
● Conflict between Organization and Environment
● Task Interdependence
○ Pooled Interdependence
○ Sequential Interdependence
○ Reciprocal Interdependence

Interpersonal Conflict
- Conflict between two or more individuals in almost certain to occur in the
same organization, given the great variety in perceptions, goals, attitudes,
and so forth among its members.
 - Personality Clash - Conflicts also may arise between people who have
different beliefs or perceptions about some aspect of their work or their
organization.
- Excess Competitiveness - Two people vying for the same job, for example,
may resort to political behavior in an effort to gain an advantage.

Intergroup
- Conflict between two or more organizational groups is also quite common.
- Just like people, different departments often have different goals. Further,
these goals may often be incompatible.
- Two sales groups may disagree over how to meet sales goals, and two groups
of managers may have different ideas about how best to allocate
organizational resources.
- Competition for scarce resources can also lead to intergroup conflict. Most
organizations - especially universities, hospitals, government agencies, and
businesses in depressed industries - have limited resources.

Conflict Between Organization And Environment

- Conflict that arises between one organization and another is called
interorganizational conflict. A moderate amount of interorganizational
conflict resulting from business competition is, of course, expected but
sometimes conflict becomes more extreme.
- Conflict can also arise between an organization and other elements of its
environment.

Task Interdependence
- Task interdependence can also result in conflict across any of the levels
noted previously. The greater the interdependence between departments,
the greater the likelihood that conflict will occur. There are three major
forms of interdependence: pooled, sequential, and reciprocal.

Pooled Interdependence
- Lowest level of interdependence, least amount of conflict
- Units with pooled interdependence operate with little interaction - the
interdependence.
Sequential Interdependence
- Moderate level of interdependence, higher potential for conflict
- the output of one unit becomes the input for another in a sequential fashion.

Reciprocal Interdependence
- Most complex level of interdependence, highest potential for conflict
- Exists when both activities flow both ways between units

III. REACTION TO CONFLICT

- The most common reactions to conflict are avoidance, accommodation

competition, collaboration, and compromise.
- Whether the conflict is between people acting as individuals or people acting
as representatives of groups, the five types of interactions can be analyzed in
terms of relationships among the goals of the people or the groups they
represent.
Reactions to conflict can be differentiated along two dimensions; how important
each party's goals are to that party and how compatible the goals are. The
importance of reaching a goal may range from very high to very low. The degree of
goal compatibility is the extent to which the goals can be achieved simultaneously.

FIVE TYPES OF REACTION TO CONFLICT

Avoidance
- occurs when an interaction is relatively unimportant to either party's goals,
and the goals are incompatible
- Because the parties to the conflict are not striving toward compatible goals,
and the issues in question seem unimportant, the parties simply try to avoid
interacting with one another.

Accomodation
- occurs when the goals are compatible, but the interactions are not
considered important to overall goal attainment
- Interaction of this type may involve discussions of how the parties can
accomplish their interdependent tasks with the least expenditure of time and
effort.

Competition
- Occurs when the goals are incompatible, and the interactions are important
to each party's meeting its goals
 - If a competitive situation gets out of control, as when overt antagonism
occurs, and there are no rules or procedures to follow, then competition can
result in conflict.

Collaboration
- occurs when the interaction between groups is very important to goal
attainment, and the goals are compatible
- Parties to a conflict may initially have difficulty working out the ways in
which all can achieve their goals. However, because the interactions are
important to goal attainment, the parties are willing to continue to work
together to achieve the goals. Collaborative relationships can lead to new and
innovative ideas and solutions to differences.

Compromise
- Occurs when the interactions are moderately important to goal attainment,
and the goals are neither completely compatible nor completely
incompatible.
- In a compromise situation, parties interact with others striving to achieve
goals, but they may not aggressively pursue goal attainment in either a
competitive or collaborative manner because the interactions are not that
important to goal attainment.

In summary, when groups are in conflict, they may react in several different ways. If
the goals of the parties are very compatible, the parties may engage in mutually
supportive interactions - that is, collaboration or accommodation. If the goals are
very incompatible, each may attempt to foster its own success at the expense of the
other, engaging in competition or avoidance.

IV. MANAGING CONFLICT

- Managers must know when to stimulate conflict and when to resolve if they
are to avoid its potentially disruptive effects
Basic Techniques for Stimulating and Resolving Conflict

Stimulating Conflict
- Conflict Stimulation is the creation and constructive use of conflict by a
manager.
- Its purpose is to bring about situations in which differences of opinion are
exposed for examination by all.
- Conflict can be a catalyst for creativity and change in an organization

Methods in Stimulating Conflict

- Altering the physical location of groups
- Forcing more resource sharing
- Implementing other changes in relationships among groups
- Training programs
V. CONFLICT RESOLUTION
When a potentially harmful conflict situation exists, however, a manager needs
to engage in conflict resolution. Conflict needs to be resolved when it causes major
disruptions in the organization and absorbs time and effort that could be used
more productively. Conflict should also be resolved when its focus is on the group's
internal goals rather than on organizational goals.

When attempting to resolve conflict, managers should first attempt to

determine the source of the conflict. If the source of destructive conflict is a
particular person or two, it might be appropriate to alter the membership of one or
both groups. If the conflict is due to differences in goals, perceptions of the
difficulty of goal attainment, or the importance of the goals to the conflicting
parties, the manager can attempt to move the conflicting parties into one of the
five types of reactions to conflict, depending on the nature of the conflicting
parties.

Structural Approaches to Conflict Management

Conflict handling styles describe how one party approaches the other party in a
conflict situation. But conflict management also involves altering the underlying
structural causes of potential conflict. The main structural approaches are:
● Emphasizing superordinate goals
● Reducing differentiation
● Improving communication and understanding
● Reducing task interdependence
● Increasing resources
● Clarifying rules and procedures.

Emphasizing Superordinate Goals

Superordinate goals are goals that the conflicting employees or departments
value and whose attainment requires the joint resources and effort of those
parties. These goals are called superordinate because they are higher order
aspirations, such as the organization's strategic objectives rather than
objectives specific to the individual or work unit.

Suppose that marketing staff want a new product released quickly, whereas
engineers want more time to test and add new features. Leaders can
potentially reduce this interdepartmental conflict by reminding both groups of
 the company's mission to serve customers or by pointing out that competitors
currently threaten the company's leadership in the industry. With increased
commitment to corporate-wide goals (customer focus, competitiveness)
engineering and marketing employees pay less attention to their competing
departmental-level goals, which reduces their perceived conflict with
coworkers. Superordinate goals also potentially reduce the problem of
differentiation, because they establish feelings of a shared social identity (work
for the same company).

Reducing Differentiation
Another way to minimize dysfunctional conflict is to reduce the difference that
generates conflict. As people develop common experiences and beliefs, they
become more motivated to coordinate activities and resolve their disputes
through constructive discussion.

We can also remove sources of different values and beliefs like moving staff
across the 2 companies or having them work together on joint projects can
help them develop common experiences that we can reduce differentiation.
Cross-border, cross-functional teamwork on projects can also minimize
dysfunctional conflict. In this way team members come to depend on each
other.

Improving Communication and Mutual Understanding

Exhibit 14.1 outlines the guidelines for resolving conflict through communication
and mutual understanding. The parties need to remain open-minded and avoid
defensive emotional response throughout this process. The process begins when
each party describes its perceptions of the situation to the other party..

Although communication and mutual understanding can work well, there are two
important warnings.
● First, these interventions should be applied only where differentiation is
sufficiently low or after differentiation has been reduced. The reason is that
when forced to interact with people whom we believe are quite different and
in conflict with us, we tend to select information that reinforce that view.
● Second warning is that people in collectivist and high power distance
cultures are less comfortable with the practice of resolving differences
through direct and open communication. People in Confucian cultures prefer
an avoidance conflict management style because it is the most consistent
with harmony and face saving.

Reducing Interdependence
Three ways to reduce interdependence among employees and work units are to
create buffers, use integration, and combine jobs.

Create buffers: A buffer is any mechanism that loosens the coupling between
two or more people or work units. This decoupling reduces the potential for
conflict because the buffer reduces the effect of one party on the other.

Use integrator: Integrators are employees who coordinate the activities of

work units toward the completion of a common task. Integrators rarely have
direct authority over the departments they integrate, so they must rely on
referent power and persuasion to manage conflict and accomplish the work.

Combine jobs: Combining jobs is both a form of job enrichment and a way to
reduce task interdependence. Consider a toaster assembly system where one
person inserts the heating element, another adds the sides, and so on.
Increasing Resources
An obvious way to reduce conflict caused by resource scarcity is to increase
the amount of resources available. Corporate decision makers might quickly
dismiss this solution because of the costs involved. However, they need to
carefully compare these costs with the costs of dysfunctional conflict arising
out of resource scarcity.

Clarifying Rules and Procedures

Conflicts that arise from ambiguities can be minimized by establishing rules
and procedures. If two departments are fighting over the use of a new
laboratory, a schedule might be established that allocates the lab exclusively to
each team at certain times of the day or week.

Using Interpersonal Techniques to Manage Conflict

There are also several techniques that focus on interpersonal processes that can be
used to manage conflict such as:
● Team Building - Team Building Activities are intended to enhance the
effectiveness and satisfaction of individuals who work in groups or teams and
to promote overall group effectiveness, consequently there should be less
conflict among members of the team.
● Survey Feedback - In survey feedback, each employee responds to a
questionnaire intended to measure perceptions and attitudes. Everyone
involved, including the supervisor, receives the results of the survey. The aim
of this approach is usually to change the behavior of supervisors by showing
them how their subordinates view them. After the feedback has been
provided, workshops may be conducted to evaluate results and suggest
constructive changes.
● Third-Party Peacemaking - Third-party peacemaking can be appropriate on
the individual, group, or organization level. A third party, usually a trained
external facilitator, uses a variety of mediation or negotiation techniques to
resolve problems or conflicts between individuals or groups.

Negotiated Conflict Management - Conflict solutions are sometimes negotiated in

advance. For instance, a labor agréement often spells out in detail how union
members must report a grievance, how management must respond and how the
dispute will be resolved. Conflict is thus avoided by preestablishing exactly how it
will be addressed.
VI. RESOLVING CONFLICT THROUGH NEGOTIATION

Negotiation - is the process in which two or more parties (people or groups) reach
an agreement on an issue even though they have different preferences regarding
that issue.

Approaches to negotiation

● Individual Differences - The key to successful negotiation was selecting

the right person to do the negotiating, one who had the appropriate
demographic characteristics or personality

Demographic characteristics - age, gender, and race, among others,

Personality variables - risk-taking, locus of control, tolerance for ambiguity,
self-esteem, authoritarianism, and Machiavellianism

This assumption seemed to make sense because negotiation is such a personal and
interactive process. However, it rarely showed positive results expected because
situational variables negated the effects of individual differences.

● Situational Characteristics - The context within which negotiation takes

place. They include things such as the:

1. Types of communication between negotiators

2. The potential outcomes of the negotiation
3. The relative power of the parties (both positional and personal)
4. The time frame available for negotiation
5. The number of people representing each side
6. The presence of the other parties

Some of this research contributed to the understanding of the negotiation process,

However, many situational characteristics are external and beyond the control of
the negotiators.
 ● Game Theory - was developed by economists using mathematical models
to predict the outcome of negotiation situations. It requires that every
alternative and outcome be analyzed with probabilities and numerical
outcomes reflecting the preferences for each outcome. A predictive model
of how negotiation should be conducted.
One major drawback is that it requires the ability to describe all possible options
and outcomes for every possible move in every situation before the negotiation
starts. Another problem is that this theory assumes that negotiations are rational at
all times and another study has shown that negotiations often do not act rationally.

● Cognitive Approaches - Recognizes that negotiators often depart from

perfect rationality during negotiation, it tries to predict how and when
negotiation will make these departures.

Howard Raiffa’s decision analytic approach focuses on providing advice to

negotiators actively involved in the negotiation.

Bazerman and Neale have added by specifying the right ways in which negotiators
systematically deviate from rationality.

The types of deviations include:

1. Escalation of commitment to a previously selected course of action
2. Over Reliance on readily available information
3. Assuming that the negotiations can produce fixed-sum outcomes
4. Anchoring negotiation in irrelevant information.

● Win-win Negotiation - Developed by Ross Reck and his associates, This

approach does not treat negotiation as a game in which there are winners
and losers. Instead, it approaches negotiation as an opportunity for both
sides to be winners, to get what they want out of the agreement.

The Win-Win approach is a four-step approach illustrated in the PRAM model.

1. Planning - setting, and anticipation of goals, determining probable areas of

agreement and disagreement, and solutions.
2. Relationship - developing relationships to cultivate a sense of mutual trust
3. Agreement - Forming an agreement is to realize that both parties share
many of the goals.
4. Maintenance - Maintenance entails providing meaningful feedback, keeping
in contact, and reaffirming trust between parties.