Chinese Employees' Interpersonal Conflict Management Strategies

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IJCMA
23,4 Chinese employees’ interpersonal
conflict management strategies
Hannah-Hanh D. Nguyen
382 Department of Psychology, California State University, Long Beach,
Long Beach, California, USA, and
Jie Yang
School of Business Administration, Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics,
Nanchang, China
Abstract
Purpose – The main research purposes of this paper are to: conceptualize Chinese conflict
management behaviors as contingent on the hierarchical relations of conflict parties in an
organizational context; and investigate individual characteristics as moderators in this contingency
framework.
Design/methodology/approach – This emic study consisted of two steps: using nine subject
matter experts to develop conflict scenarios and conflict management strategies, and using this
instrument to collect data from 704 actual employees across China. Multinomial logistic analysis was
used to analyze respondents’ choice of strategies.
Findings – The findings supported the hypotheses. Chinese role-playing a supervisor in a conflict
with their subordinate tended to use direct, assertive strategies to resolve the conflict, but the results
depended on age, education, gender, region and work experience. As a subordinate in a conflict with
their supervisor, Chinese chose indirect, harmony-preserving strategies, particularly when they were
older and more interaction adept. In a conflict with a peer, respondents used a broader spectrum of
conflict management strategies, depending on their individual characteristics. No “best practices”
were found or universal strategies adopted.
Research limitations/implications – The limitations include the lack of random sampling and a
scenario-based method. The emic evidence for a contingency perspective of conflict resolution
framework was provided. The conflict scenarios may be used in organizational training of conflict
management.
Originality/value – Conflict scenarios and management strategies developed by local subject matter
experts were used to evaluate Chinese workers’ choices of conflict management strategies. The
findings call for the re-conceptualization of conflict management strategies as a contingent and
culture-specific construct.
Keywords Chinese conflict management strategy, International organizational practices,
Emic conflict management, Conflict resolution, Organizational conflict, Chinese people
Paper type Research paper
Conflict refers to a struggle between at least two interdependent parties with

incompatible goals, scarce resources and rewards, and potential interference from the
International Journal of Conflict This research project was sponsored by the Personnel Decision International-Global Research
Management
Vol. 23 No. 4, 2012 Consortium (PDI-GRC No. 00-CKW-A1) and Natural Science Foundation of China (NSFC
pp. 382-412 No. 70962001). Please send correspondence to Hannah-Hanh D. Nguyen at hnguyen@csulb.edu,
q Emerald Group Publishing Limited
1044-4068
or Department of Psychology, 1250 Bellflower Blvd, Long Beach, CA 90840, 562-985-1545, or Jie
DOI 10.1108/10444061211267272 Yang at yang66@263.net
other in achieving their goals (Baron, 1997; Boulding, 1963; Deutsch, 1962; Deutsch, Conflict
1973; Rubin et al., 1994). Conflict in organizations is a pervasive phenomenon that management
permeates a multitude of organizational processes and outcomes (Rahim, 2001). So far
the majority of empirical evidence on conflict management has been based on a strategies
western perspective, using western samples. The body of culture-specific research
(e.g. in China) is still limited. Given the growing trend of globalization and China’s
economy growth in the recent years, it is important to understand how organizational 383
conflicts are typically handled by Chinese workers, because the norms and values of
this culture may have a nontrivial impact on how people handle their relationships (see
Brett, 2001). For example, many Chinese consider it is important to have good
relationships with their co-workers (Hofstede, 1980). Because they value social
harmony, Chinese may avoid people with whom they have disagreements, or make a
conscious effort not to discuss disputed topics (Tinsley and Brett, 2001).
The present study extended the literature by investigating the contingent nature of
interpersonal conflict management strategies used by Chinese employees in
organizational settings. We used an indigenous approach to explore possible conflict
management coping behaviors in this culture, taking into account particularities of the
norm and value of Chinese culture (Brislin, 1976). We also adopted a contingency
perspective: Chinese workers may not have a “best practice” or one-size-fits-all strategy
as they handle disputes with parties of varying organizational positions (an important
aspect in evaluating organizational performance; Graen and Uhl-Bien, 1995). Last, we
took into account the influence of individual characteristics.
Conflict management strategies

When conflict erupts, individuals respond in various ways: choosing their actions
consciously and thoughtfully, or reacting emotionally in the heat of the moment
(Tjosvold, 1986). In the literature, the concept of interpersonal conflict management
styles refers to specific reactions and behaviors of individuals when dealing with a
conflict (Follett, 1940). Researchers have developed several typologies of this construct
(e.g. Blake and Mouton, 1964; Follett, 1940; Thomas, 1976). For example, Blake and
Mouton (1964) classified conflict management styles into five types: competing
(i.e. achieving your goal at the sacrifice of the other’s goal), collaborating (i.e. attempting
to find a win-win solution that allows both parties’ goals to be completely achieved),
avoiding (i.e. refusing to face the conflict or even acknowledge the existence of a
conflict), accommodating (i.e. forgiving someone for an infraction and allowing
subsequent ones), and compromising (i.e. acknowledging partial agreement with a
specific viewpoint, and taking partial blame for an infraction). In the present study, we
prefer the concept of “conflict management strategies” (i.e. a repertoire of reactions to a
conflict that individuals may adopt depending on the situations) to “conflict
management styles” (implying a fixed tendency). The assumption is that, under time
and/or resource pressures, individuals often have to make an immediate choice of a
conflict managing action or actions suitable for the situation from his/her repertoire,
instead of relying on some preferred styles.
Cross-cultural and culture-specific conflict management

Liu and Chen (2002) argue that the existing conflict-management styles as defined and
evidenced in the western literature may not be generalizable across cultures, because
IJCMA the antecedents and consequences of conflict are generally determined by a particular
23,4 cultural context. For example, Chinese workers may tend to manage organizational
conflicts under the influence of Confucianism: life principles which consider yielding
and compromising as desirable virtues because they promote group harmony and
social order (Leung et al., 2002). Confucian ideals would disapprove of an individual
who engages in certain behaviors that might cause group disharmony, perceiving them
384 as overtly contentious, aggressive, quarrelsome, or litigious to be contemptible (Kim,
1994). In a western country, a person with similar behaviors might be positively
described as being self-confident, assertive and honest, or having a sense of justice.
Another example is the avoidance strategy: it has a positive nuance in East Asian
cultures for its association with one’s high concern for others’ “face” (Kim and Leung,
2001; Ting-Toomey, 1985, 1989). However, avoidance is conceptualized as reflecting a
low concern for both self and others in a western culture (e.g. Canary and Spitzberg,
1987; Putnam and Wilson, 1982), thus having a negative nuance. Cross-cultural
empirical evidence further shed light on this argument.
Cross-cultural differences
Cross-cultural researchers have evidenced that the existing western-oriented
conceptual framework of conflict management (based on the self-interest
perspective) may be inadequate in describing eastern conflict-managing behaviors
(e.g. Chen, 2001, 2002; Hwang, 1997; Leung and Brew, 2009; Ohbuchi and Takahashi,
1994). The reason is that the characteristic of a traditional Asian culture is the
preservation of a collective sense of self (Eng and Kuiken, 2006). For example, Ohbuchi
et al. (1999) studied the influence of cultural values on how people made decisions in
conflict situations. They found that the collectivist Japanese preferred and used the
avoidance strategy significantly more than the individualistic American who preferred
assertive tactics. Japanese also used the strategies of assertion (strongly asserting one’s
request) and third-party intervention (seeking help or advice) significantly less often
than Americans.
Furthermore, Leung and colleagues (Leung, 1987; Leung and Lind, 1986) found that
Chinese preferred negotiated, mediated settlements while avoiding direct
confrontation, whereas Americans preferred direct confrontation. Tinsley and Brett
(2001) found that Americans were more likely to discuss a workplace task-oriented
conflict directly, trying to bridge both parties’ underlying interests, whereas their Hong
Kong counterparts were more likely to try to involve the upper management in the
resolution. Tang (1986) found significant differences in conflict handling styles
between Chinese and British government executives in Hong Kong: Not surprising,
Chinese executives preferred cooperativeness and had a distinct conflict orientation
which could be traced to aspects of Chinese traditional values, whereas British ones
preferred assertiveness.
Culture-specific strategy differences

Even among East Asian countries, there are sub-cultural differences in terms of
conflict management strategies. Kim et al. (2007) examined how Chinese, Japanese, and
Korean employees resolved a conflict with their supervisors; and how cultural factors
explained the sub-group differences in conflict management styles. Using Thomas’
(1992) typology, Kim et al. (2007) found that Koreans were more likely to use
compromising (intermediate concern for self and others) as their preferred style than Conflict
Chinese and Japanese. The researchers’ explanation was that Korean companies, management
unlike Chinese and Japanese, emphasize the mutual dependence between supervisors
and subordinates. In addition, Japanese, compared with the Chinese and Koreans, were strategies
less likely to dominate (high concern for self and low concern for others) and more
likely to oblige their supervisors (low concern for self and high concern for others). The
researchers also found that these differences were significantly explained by the 385
different emphases on collective goals and the concern for self-face among these East
Asian subgroups. Therefore, the researchers called for further emic studies to explore
culture-specific coping management styles within each East Asian sub-culture.
In sum, past research has provided the empirical evidence for both cross-cultural
differences (e.g. Americans vs Asians) and intra-culture differences (among East Asian
sub-cultures) in styles of conflict management, meaning that certain conflict
management styles are not universally appropriate for cultural reasons. The present
study extended the literature by examining strategies of conflict management in a
single culture (Chinese) with a contingency perspective. Our conceptual framework is
also based on an understanding of the principles of Chinese socialization process.
A contingency perspective of conflict-managing strategies

Contingency perspectives have long existed in the broad organizational strategy
research in general (Ginsberg and Venkatraman, 1985), and conflict management in
particular (Thomas, 1976). A contingency view means there is not one best way of
managing a conflict under all conditions, but there are optimal ways of managing it
under certain conditions (Owens, 1987). In other words, a contingency perspective of
conflict management takes into account the extent to which individuals change their
coping strategies across a variety of conflict situations. This process is influenced by
situational constraints (e.g. the nature of the conflict, the relationship between
participants, organizational structure, and environmental factors; Lawrence and
Lorsch, 1967) as by personal constraints. Therefore, we agreed with Van de Vliert et al.
(1995) position that people often change conflict managing strategies as a conflict
develops. Even under the East Asian influence or social norms and communication
rules, we believe that Chinese’ actual conflict-management behaviors would be still
made up of multiple actions (sequential or simultaneous). Further, organizational
relationships would interact with personal factors to determine Chinese workers’
choice of a conflict managing strategy.
Traditional communications styles and conflict-coping tendencies in China

Chinese communication researchers have posited that, to understand traditional styles
of communications in China, one should first understand three important concepts that
dominate Chinese socialization process: Li (i.e. norms and rules of proper behaviors in a
social context which emphasizes showing respect or reverence to others; Chen and
Xiao, 1993); Guanxi (i.e. relationships between two parties, regulated by specific
communication rules and patterns so that individuals could avoid embarrassment or
even conflicts in social interactions; Chen and Chung, 1994), and Ren (i.e. forbearance,
or controlling/suppressing individual emotion, desire and psychological impulse;
Hwang, 1997).
IJCMA In addition, Paik and Tung (1999) noticed the practical nature of Chinese as a whole
23,4 which might drive people to try to find a “win-win” resolution to a conflict situation (as
evidenced in Kim et al.’s, 2007 study). Chen and Xiao (1993) posited that one may seek li
shang wang lai (the rule of reciprocity): conflicting parties should show mutual
responsibilities in social interactions. However, if this rule fails because the other party
refuses to preserve the harmony, Chinese may enact the rule of shian li hou bin (being
386 courteous before using force), changing strategies such as asking for third-party
interventions. Last but not least, Chen and Starosta (1997) specified power (associated
with authority, seniority or expertise) as another factor embedded in Chinese conflict
coping tendency. Combined together, these social communication rules and processes
would influence people’s use of conflict management strategies, thus defying a simple
“Chinese” typology of preferred styles. In other words, Chinese may choose to enact
either or several of the above principles to resolve a conflict, and the alternatives are
contingent on organizational relationships between conflict parties, and their
individual characteristics.
Organizational echelon effects

According to Hwang (1997), whether the organizational relationship at stake is vertical
(superiors vs subordinates) or horizontal (between peers) may predict one’s choice of
conflict managing strategies. For example, operating on the Li and Ren concepts,
subordinates may choose to endure a conflict with their superior in silence. If trying to
speak up for themselves, they would do so via an indirect communication channel
instead of engaging in a direct confrontation. Alternatively, they may pretend to obey
the superior but continue with their activities behind the supervisor’s back. Kim et al.’s
(2007) evidence seemed to lend partial credence to this theory: The researchers asked
workers how they had handled a direct conflict with their supervisor. Chinese
subordinates reported using the style of integration the most: they preferred discussing
the conflicting issue with their supervisor to find a mutually satisfying solution.
When subordinates were inadvertently caught in a conflict between two
supervisors, what would they do? Kim et al.’s (1999) qualitative study found that
South Korean subordinates would choose low-key, diplomacy-oriented strategies to
resolve the bosses’ conflict, such as meeting separately with the conflict parties,
listening to each person’s opinions and reiterating them to the other party, and
appealing for the parties’ empathy and understanding.
Between peers or colleagues, employees may operate mainly on the rule of
reciprocity as proposed by Chen and Xiao (1993). Hwang (1997) suggested that Chinese
workers might resolve a conflict with a peer directly (e.g. via negotiation), and the
optimal strategy choices (e.g. compromising; fighting; asking for third-party
mediation, or severing relationships) are contingent on both conflict parties’ motives.
Chinese supervisors may choose direct, assertive or dominating conflict
management strategies in handling a conflict with subordinates, partially because of
their hierarchical power position (i.e. they are less likely to bear the consequences of
violating the social norms and rules than lower-echelon workers; Bond and Hwang,
1986), and partially because East Asian management culture places an emphasis on
top-down decision-making and problem-solving (Chang, 1983). In other words, Asian
leaders may behave similarly to their western counterparts in their efforts to resolve
subordinates’ conflict situations (see, for example, Karambayya et al., 1992). The
empirical evidence was mixed: Kim et al. (1999) interviewed South Korean leaders Conflict
about their management styles in resolving subordinate-subordinate disputes. The management
researchers found that the leaders frequently used assertive strategies (i.e. putting the
conflict parties together; educating them). However, Wang et al.’s (2007) surveyed strategies
Chinese top managers of private companies in Sichuan (a province in China) about
their preference of conflict resolution types. The researchers found that Chinese
managers were inclined to use integrating (striving for a win-win solution) to handle a 387
conflict with their subordinates. A possible explanation for these mixed findings is that
Chinese supervisors may adjust their conflict management strategies according to the
quality of the work relationship they had with their subordinates. In the broad
literature, Green (2008) found that the lower quality relationship a leader had with
his/her subordinate, the more likely that the leader would use moderating styles to
resolve their differences.
Individual differences in conflict management

Few cross-cultural or culture-specific studies have examined individual characteristics
as possible antecedents or moderators of workers’ conflict management strategies. In
the broad conflict management literature, however, some evidence suggests the
influence of respondents’ individual characteristics (e.g. sex, age and education).
Sex
Mixed evidence was found regarding the direction of gender differences in conflict
strategies. Cingöz-Ulu and Lalonde (2007) examined strategies used by Turk and
Canadian participants in varying contexts of conflicts (same-sex friendships,
opposite-sex friendships, and romantic relationships). They found that women were
more likely to use persuasion with their romantic partners than with their female
friends, whereas men were more likely to use strategies such as refraining, giving
priority to, and giving in to their male friends than to their romantic partners.
Haferkamp (1991) found that men used denial-avoidant strategies more often than
women, but Thomas et al. (2008) found that men used more competing strategy than
women regardless of organization levels.
Age
In a qualitative study, Weitzman (2000) asked 35 elderly participants (65 years and
older) to describe a recent interpersonal conflict and their respective response. She
found that most participants used the submissive strategy. Charles et al. (2009)
examined daily reports of interpersonal conflicts by 1,031 participants; they found that
older adults largely used more passive conflict management strategies (i.e. avoiding
negative situations) than younger adults.
Education
Few researchers have investigated one’s education level as a correlate of conflict
management types in work-related conflicts. Recently, Wang et al. (2007) found that the
more educated Chinese managers were, the more likely they would experience conflicts
of a cognitive nature (compared with those of an emotional nature).
IJCMA The present study
23,4 We extended the literature by investigating not fixed conflict management styles but
malleable strategies used by Chinese employees in various work-related conflicts.
Given the reviewed literature, we hypothesized that Chinese involved in a work-related
conflict will adopt different strategies when resolving a conflict based on the parties’
organizational echelon level; and respondents’ characteristics:
388 H1. Participants role-playing a supervisor in a workplace conflict with their
subordinate will mainly use direct, assertive strategies to resolve a conflict
with a subordinate or that between two subordinates, but this effect depends
on participants’ characteristics.
H2. Participants role-playing a subordinate in a workplace conflict with their
supervisor will mainly use indirect, harmony-preserving strategies to resolve
a conflict with a supervisor or that between two supervisors, even at personal
costs, but this effect depends on participants’ characteristics.
H3. Participants role-playing a coworker in a workplace conflict with their peer
will equally seek both direct, assertive conflict management strategies
(e.g. confronting peers, asserting work roles) and indirect harmony-preserving
strategies, but this effect depends on participants’ characteristics.
Although the literature seems to support individual differences in conflict management
strategy preferences, there have been no clear theories made about possible
psychological mechanisms underlying these potential differences. Lacking such
theories, we explored the mitigating influence of these individual characteristics in the
present study. We also explored regional locations as a possible factor because China is
a vast nation with potential regional differences. Other relevant individual
characteristics included participants’ work experience, their organization’s type of
ownership, and their self-appraised level of interpersonal adeptness.
Method
Design
We followed a culture-specific approach (Brislin, 1976) to design this study: Chinese
were asked to identify typical conflict incidents; and the most suitable conflict
management behavior(s) according to the particularities of the norms and values of
Chinese culture. An advantage of this approach is that it incorporates unique factors
that may not be included in western established theoretical frameworks in
organizational sciences (Gelfand et al., 2006). We used the “story-telling” scenario
technique to create multiple “typical” or “illustrative” scenarios of conflicts based on
Chinese work experience (see Kahn et al., 1997). The study consisted of two steps: using
subject matter experts to develop conflict scenarios, incidents and alternatives; and
testing the research hypotheses with a sample of Chinese employees.
Conflict scenario development

In step 1, a focus group of nine Chinese subject matter experts (SMEs) developed the
conflict situations and incidents for the present study. All SMEs had a graduate degree
(or were working toward such a degree) in applied psychology. The SMEs are male;
mean age ¼ 37.11 years (SD ¼ 8.89). They reported background experiences of
dealing with organizational conflicts and knowledge about the conflict management Conflict
literature. The SMEs were asked, “What organizational conflict do you believe is management
difficult to deal with based on your working experience?” We then classified the SMEs’
pool of generated critical incidents into three levels based on the role of the strategies
conflict-resolving party (supervisor, peer or subordinate). We next examined the
content for strong interpersonal conflict situations: the stronger the violation of
behavioral standards or expectations (i.e. hurting a party or something tangible or 389
intangible that the party cares about), the more pressured the party would feel about
making decisions in accordance with the party’s relational, financial and/or
organizational resources. Therefore, eight scenarios consisting of 11 critical
incidents of difficult conflicts or dilemmas were retained.
The SMEs next generated possible coping strategies for each critical incident,
taking into account several factors (based on Stone and Neale’s (1984) method): the
interpersonal relationships among the conflicting parties; the echelon position of the
main character; and possible actions either under the constraint of Chinese social and
communication norms (e.g. showing respect; inter-relationships; forbearance;
practicality; hierarchical power; the rule of reciprocity, and the rule of using force
after courteousness fails) or with a freedom of choice. Our intention was that any
conflict management strategy would reflect nuances embedded in the relationship
between the conflict parties. When selecting a certain strategy, Chinese workers would
show their understanding of the situational nuances. Coincidentally, we ended up with
six options of coping strategies for each conflict incident. Note that some strategy
alternatives may be equivalent to one or more western conflict coping styles (e.g. Blake
and Mouton’s, 1964 typology).
For example, in Conflict Incident 1.1 (see Table I), those who role-played the
superior “Chair Su” have six options to select from when dealing with his subordinate
“Mr Li” as follows:
(1) To compromise and know how far he should go. This strategy reflects
practicality and forbearance (roughly equivalent to Blake and Mouton’s (1964)
compromising style).
(2) To ignore Mr Li’s viewpoints and stick to his own way. This strategy solely plays
up the authority power (somewhat similar to competing).
(3) To consult with Mr Li before assigning any extra task to Little Guo in an effort to
obtain Mr Li’s consensus. This strategy reflects respect, practicality, and the
rule of reciprocity but also with a hint of power (equivalent to collaborating).
(4) To assign the extra task to Mr Li first and let him delegate it to Little Guo. This is
also similar to collaboration but with Chair Su’s willingness to conform to the
hierarchical nature of formal task-assignment procedure in the organization
(forbearance).
(5) To re-arrange job duties of the staff. This strategy involves a very assertive
action of restructuring the work itself as a resolution for the conflict at hand,
demonstrating power. There is no exact equivalent style in Blake and Mouton’s
(1964) typology.
(6) To explain the situation to Little Guo and let him make his own decision about
whether or not he wants to work on the extra tasks. This option includes some
elements of respect, inter-relationships, and the rule of reciprocity (equivalent to
23,4
390
Table I.
situations
IJCMA
A summary of eight
scenarios and 11 conflict
Scenario Conflict incident description Conflict no. and parties
Organizational status
1 Mr. Su was a department chair and Mr. Li was his deputy. Little Guo was hand-picked by 1.1 Mr Su v. Mr Li Supervisor-
Mr. Li among the recent university graduates to be his own assistant, in charge of subordinate
handling public relations tasks. However, due to staff shortage and a heavy work load in 1.2 Little Guo v. Mr Su and Mr Li Subordinate-
the company, Chair Su occasionally gave some extra assignments directly to Little Guo. supervisor
Mr. Li disagreed with this arrangement and often resisted Mr. Su’s assigning additional
work to Little Guo
2 Little Zhang and Little Xie worked in the same department. Because there were not many 2 Little Zhang v. Little Xie Peer-peer
young male workers in this department, they were often given a lot of heavy-lifting,
labor-intensive tasks. However, after a while, Little Zhang noticed that Little Xie often
cut corners or played tricks to get out of doing the heavy labor work
3 Mr. Zhang, the Director of the General Office, was often at odds with Mr. Du, one of his 3.1 Mr Du v. Mr Zhang Subordinate-
subordinates; whereas this director was on good terms with Little Cui, another supervisor
subordinate. Taking the opportunity of a job redesign in the organization, Mr. Zhang 3.2 Little Cui v. Mr Zhang Subordinate-
assigned the duties of purchasing supplies and materials to Little Song, a newcomer in supervisor
the General Office. These duties used to be Mr. Du’s responsibility. Little Song was also
in charge of personnel affairs, formerly Little Cui’s responsibility
4 Mr. Zhao was the deputy general manager of a company; he was in charge of marketing 4.1 Mr Zhao v. Little Ye Supervisor-
among other responsibilities. Little Ye was the manager of the marketing section. Due to subordinate
the difference existing between them in terms of age, knowledge level and experiences, 4.2 Mr. Zhang v. Mr. Zhao and Supervisor-
they had very different opinions about how to run marketing projects. Because Little Ye Little Ye subordinate
was a favorite subordinate of Mr. Zhang, the General Manager, Little Ye often bypassed
Mr. Zhao and reported directly to Mr. Zhang
5 Little Zheng discovered by chance that Mr. Liu, his superior, was abusing his power for 5 Little Zheng v. Mr Liu Subordinate-
personal gains subordinate
(continued)
Scenario Conflict incident description Conflict no. and parties
Organizational status
6 The younger Mr. Fan and the older and more senior Mr. Du worked in the same 6 Mr Fan v. Mr Du Peer-peer
department. Perceiving Mr. Fan as a young, smart and obedient subordinate who also
had a well-rounded knowledge, Mr. Zhang, the director of their department, assigned a
large amount of administrative tasks to Mr. Fan, although Mr. Du was also very
experienced in the administrative aspect of the department. This assignment created a
situation in which Mr. Du had fewer responsibilities and more free time than Mr. Fan, but
Mr. Fan was paid much less than Mr. Du because the company’s task-based
compensation policy had not been adopted by their department. Mr. Du even bullied Mr.
Fan sometimes though Mr. Fan was a hard-working employee
7 Little Lu and Little Zhou worked in the same research institute. Little Zhou found out by 7 Little Zhou v. Little Lu Peer-peer
chance that Little Lu had plagiarized others’ works
8 Little Duan was the backbone of his department and was awarded the Excellent 8 Little Duan v. Organization Employee-
Employee title last year. Because of a previous psychological contract that the Excellent company
Employee award would rotate among workers in a department regardless of work
performance, it was another employee’s turn to be awarded the title this year. However,
the company just adopted an official policy that this award should be merit-based (which
meant Little Duan would become the Excellent Employee for the second year in a row).
The company also stated that those who received this recognition for two consecutive
years would also get a pay raise and be offered the priority to receive advanced training
Note: The conflict management incidents, organizational scenarios and corresponding strategies in Chinese are available from the second author upon
request
management
Conflict
strategies
391
Table I.
IJCMA the combination of competing, collaborating and third-party intervention).
23,4 Specifically, by inviting the third party in the conflict to have a voice but not
dealing directly with “Mr. Li,” “Chair Su” indirectly asserts his power on Mr. Li
(comparable to a competing style), but also engages “Little Guo” by giving him
a way out of getting involved in the conflict situation (similar to collaborating).
392 Participants
In step 2, the scenario packets developed in Chinese were mailed to 1500 employees
across China. Eighty-nine percents of packets were returned to the researchers.
However, the final sample was n ¼ 704 because surveys with substantial missing data
(50 percent or more) on the variables of interest were not included in the subsequent
analyses. Participants’ average age was 29.77 (SD ¼ 7.19). Participants’ typical
number of years employed (work experience) was 8.82 (SD ¼ 7.71). Men and women
were equally represented in the sample. Table II presents other demographic
information.
Valid
Variable Category n %
Regiona Eastern 379 53.8

Central 63 8.9
Western 262 37.2
Organization ownership State-owned/run enterprise 274 38.9
Collective enterprise 80 11.4
Private enterprise 156 22.2
Sole proprietorship 19 2.7
Foreign invested or joint ventures 101 14.3
Government and non-profit 74 10.5
Gender Male 358 50.9
Female 346 49.1
Age 18-25 218 31.0
26-32 298 42.3
$33 188 26.7
Education Below associate degree level 462 65.6
College graduate 242 34.4
Work experience #3 years 194 27.6
4-10 years 312 44.3
$11 years 198 28.1
Self-appraised interpersonal Be awkward at dealing with interpersonal
adeptness conflict (low adeptness) 275 39.1
Be good at dealing with interpersonal conflict
(high adeptness) 429 60.9
a
Notes: n ¼ 704; We followed the geographic segmentation of several provinces that have physical
proximity, and economic and cultural similarity, a conventional practice in Chinese research (Batson,
1996). For example, south China consists of Guangdong, Fujian and Hainan provinces. With their
original special economic zones, they are more advanced in economic development with their high tech
Table II. manufacturing and emphasis on entrepreneurship. East China consists of Shanghai and the provinces
Demographic information of Zhejiang and Jiangsu, a highly urbanized and industrialized region (this region is responsible for 30
of participants percent of China’s industrial output; Batson, 1996)
Measures and materials Conflict
Each survey packet consists of 11 conflict incidents in eight organizational scenarios
(see Table I). For example, scenario 1 depicts the conflicts between two dyads
management
(downward and upward supervisor-subordinate). Note that the characters in all strategies
scenarios were male to avoid a gender bias in responses.
The demographic questionnaire included variables such as region, type of company
ownership, gender, age, education, and work experience. Note that we explored the 393
effect of the region variable because there have been regional disparities in economic
and marketing development in China (Cui and Liu, 2000; Swanson, 1989). There was
also a one-item, six-point Likert-type question assessing participants’ self-appraised
interaction adeptness (i.e. how adept they were in interacting with others in a conflict;
1 ¼ being extremely awkward in dealing with interpersonal conflict; 6 ¼ being
extremely good at dealing with interpersonal conflict). For analysis purpose, the
responses to this item were recoded into two groups with the values of 1-3 indicating
low adeptness and the values of 4-6 indicating high adeptness.
Procedures
Respondents received the scenario packet in the mail and were instructed to mail their
completed packet back to the researchers if they volunteered to participate in the study.
They were first asked to read a description of a conflict at work and imagine being in a
particular role. They anonymously indicated how they would best respond in such a
situation by selecting one of the conflict management strategy options (see Table I).
They were also told that the answer they provided would not be judged as correct or
incorrect, and that the characters were fictitious. Finally, respondents answered the
demographic questionnaire.
Analysis
We used multinomial logistic analysis (MLA) (a.k.a. polychotomous logistic
regression) to analyze respondents’ choice of preferred conflict management strategy
choices. This is the extension of the logistic regression model when the outcome is
recorded at more than two levels (Hosmer and Lemeshow, 2000). MLA models are
multi-equation. A response variable with k categories will generate k-1 equations. Each
of these equations is a binary logistic regression comparing a group with the reference
group. MLA regressions simultaneously estimate the k-1 logits. Further, it is also the
case that the model tests all possible combinations among the k groups although it only
displays coefficients for the k-1 comparisons. In multinomial logistic regression, the
exponentiated coefficients are not odds ratios per se. The coefficients can be interpreted
as relative risk ratios (RRR).
Each conflict critical incident was subjected to the MLA analysis. Conflict
management strategy choice was the outcome variable. The categories of this outcome
variable were mutually exclusive and exhaustive. Since the outcome variable had six
levels of options, the multinomial logistic regression procedure would produce five
logits simultaneously (Hosmer and Lemeshow, 2000). Predictor variables such as
individual characteristics (a “confounder” in MLA terminology) were considered
explanatory variables for the outcome variable data; each variable was added into the
equation one by one to assess its statistical significance in the model. Non-significant
confounders would be dropped from the final model. Then, all the significant
predictors were added into the equation to observe the overall effects. A requirement is
IJCMA that the predictor variables were categorically recoded for analysis. For each variable,
23,4 the last category was treated as the reference group. Furthermore, MLA rendered a set
of RRRs for each category in comparison with the reference. These estimates identified
which factors are important determinants of which conflict management strategy
Chinese employees selected.
We interpreted the results in a three-step process:
394 .
we determined which factor had significant effect;
.
we compared the odds ratio values between a reference conflict management
strategy and other strategy options; a value of less than 1 would indicate that
respondents preferred the reference strategy to the other options presented to
them; and
.
as the reference group in each predictor variable was fixed, we were able to infer
which strategy was more likely to be selected by which group of respondents.
Results
Our contingency hypotheses predicted that participants in various work positions (a
subordinate, a peer, or a supervisor) would behave differentially in an interpersonal
conflict situation. However, these effects might depend on respondents’ individual
characteristics.
Managing a conflict with a subordinate

H1 predicted that Chinese “supervisors” tended to use direct and assertive strategies to
resolve a conflict with a subordinate (or between two subordinates). This hypothesis
was tested by three conflict incidents: 1.1, 4.1 and 4.2.
Conflict 1.1 pertains to “Chair Su’s conflict with “Mr Li,” his subordinate. “Chair Su”
was the conflict managing character; the reference strategy for participants playing
this role was Option 6 (Chair Su explained the conflict situation between him and Mr Li
to the other subordinate, Little Guo, and let the latter make his own decision). Table III
shows that respondents’ levels of education and work experience were significant
determinants of their selection of strategy options in conflict 1.1 (Chi-square values
were at p , 0.05 or less). Specifically, Education significantly predicted respondents’
selection of Options 3, 4 and 5. Those with a college degree or higher were more likely
to prefer the other three options to the reference strategy than those with less than an
Associate degree (the odds ratios of these strategies were less than 1). Work experience
significantly predicted the choice of options 2, 4, and 5 in this scenario. We found that
in the role of a supervisor, Chinese employees with 11 years or more of work experience
were more likely to prefer the other three options to the reference strategy than those
with less than three years of work experience (the odds ratio values were less than 1).
Conflict 4.1 pertains to the conflict situation between a deputy general manager (Mr
Zhao) and a middle manager (Little Ye): the latter often bypassed the former and
reported directly to the general manager of the company (Mr Zhang). The reference
strategy option was for “Mr Zhao” to remind “Little Ye” about the latter’s subordinate
position in the company hierarchy while also strengthening communication and
coordination with Little Ye (a combination of displaying power and collaborating).
Table IV shows that gender was the only significant predictor for options 1-4.
Generally, male employees were more likely than females to prefer these four options to
Conflict
Conflict management strategy Significance Odds ratio
management
2. To ignore Mr. Li’s opinion and stick to your own way strategies
Work experience
#3 years 0.018 * 0.114
$11 years (R)
3. To consult with Mr Li before assigning a job to Little Guo in an effort to 395
get Mr Li’s consensus
Education
Below associate degree 0.015 * 0.266
College graduate (R)
4. To assign the job to Mr Li first and let Mr Li delegate it to Little Guo
Education
Below associate degree 0.001 * * 0.163
Work experience
#3 years 0.010 * 0.267
$11 years (R)
5. To re-arrange job duties in these subordinates’ division
Education
Below associate degree 0.037 * 0.304
Above college (R)
Work experience
#3 years 0.039 * 0.335
$11 years (R) Table III.
Multinomial logistic
Notes: *p , 0.05; * *p , 0.01; Conflict managing character: Mr Su, a department chair; (R) ¼ the regression of conflict
reference category. Option 6: “To explain the situation to Little Guo and let him make his own choice” management strategies in
was the reference conflict management strategy conflict 1.1
the reference strategy (all odds ratios were greater than 1). Chinese men would either
directly confront their subordinate (e.g. reminding him about the company rules and
regulations), which was consistent with H1, or surprisingly withdraw completely from
the dispute (e.g. applying for another job).
Conflict 4.2 involves a general manager (Mr. Zhang) trying to resolve his
subordinates’ (Mr Zhao and Little Ye) conflict; the reference strategy was for Mr Zhang
to take the side of either subordinate by readjusting their job duties (a direct, assertive
strategy). Table V shows that region and age significantly predicted options 1 and 4,
respectively. In terms of region, eastern Chinese were more likely than western Chinese
to prefer the option of siding with Mr. Zhao and reminding Little Ye to observe the
company’s communication hierarchy (the odds ratio was less than 1). In terms of age,
younger respondents (between 18 and 32 years old) were more likely to prefer option 4
to the reference strategy than those older than 33 years of age (the odds ratios were all
greater than 1). This option involves the superior’s taking side with Little Ye but also
coordinating between the two subordinates as well; an assertive strategy but
incorporating a harmony-preserving element.
Taken together, the findings from these three conflict scenarios supported H1.
Overall, as a supervisor, participants would try to resolve the conflict with their
subordinate mainly through directly asserting their own way, although they did
choose strategies that incorporate various degrees of face-saving elements, but these
IJCMA
23,4
1. To turn a blind eye about Little Ye while improving your own
managerial performance and building your own prestige
Gender
Male 0.002 * * 1.882
396 Female (R)
2. To talk with Mr Zhang, applying for another job
Gender
Male 0.017 * 2.606
Female (R)
3. To talk with Mr Zhang, asking him to offer a helping hand
Gender
Male 0.038 * 1.676
Female (R)
4. To urge Little Ye to respect your face by observing the company
regulations about hierarchical communication
Gender
Male 0.005 * * 2.094
Female (R)
Table IV.
Multinomial logistic Notes: *p , 0.05; * *p , 0.01; Conflict managing character: Mr Zhao, the deputy general manager;
regression of conflict (R) ¼ the reference category. Option 6 “To remind Little Ye about the hierarchical communication
management strategy in chain in the department, while strengthening exchanges and coordination with Little Ye” was the
conflict 4.1 reference conflict management strategy choice
1. To warn Little Ye personally and urge him to observe the company

regulations
Region
East China 0.031 * 2.452
West China (R)
4. To encourage Little Ye to report to yourself while coordinating and
judging between Mr Zhao and Little Ye
Age
18-25 years 0.010 * 18.983
26-32 years 0.009 * * 17.750
Table V. $ 33 years (R)
regression of conflict Notes: *p , 0.05; * *p , 0.01; Conflict managing character: Mr Zhang, the director. (R) ¼ the
management strategy in reference category. Option 6 “To make a choice between Mr Zhao and Little Ye by re-adjusting their
conflict 4.2 jobs” was the reference conflict management strategy choice
results depended on individual differences such as age, education, gender, region and
work experience.
Managing a conflict with a supervisor

Hypothesis 2 predicted that Chinese “subordinates” tended to use indirect,
harmony-preserving strategies to resolve a conflict with their supervisor (or between
supervisors). This hypothesis was tested by four conflict incidents: 1.2, 3.1, 3.2, and 5.
Conflict 1.2 depicts a subordinate-supervisor conflict; the reference strategy was for Conflict
“Little Guo” (the subordinate) to try to work as much as possible and say as little as management
possible about the extra work arrangement to satisfy both of his supervisors, Chair Su
and Mr. Li (the principles of forbearance and respect). Table VI shows that age was a strategies
significant determinant to options 1, 3, and/or 5. In the role of a subordinate caught
between two supervisors in a workplace conflict, older participants (older than 33) were
more likely to prefer the reference strategy to the other three options than younger 397
participants (e.g. 18-32 years of age; the odds ratios were less than 1). While some
younger Chinese endorsed harmony-preserving strategies (e.g. working extra hours to
complete one boss’s tasks without the other boss’ knowledge; completing the extra
tasks first and consulting with his bosses later) as much as did their older counterparts,
some others did not see anything wrong with refusing the extra tasks outright either.
Self-appraised interaction adeptness was a significant determinant: in the role of Little
Guo, Chinese with low self-appraised interaction adeptness were more likely than those
with high adeptness to prefer option 1 (performing their job duty only and refusing any
extra work; a competing-like strategy) to the reference strategy (the log odds ratio was
greater than 1). Company ownership type was a significant determinant: employees
working in state-owned enterprises were more likely to prefer the reference strategy to
option 5 (performing the tasks first, then consulting with the two bosses) than those in
governmental agencies or non-profit organizations (the log odds ratio was less than 1).
Conflict 3.1 refers to the subordinate-supervisor conflict between “Mr. Du” and his
boss (Mr Zhang). The reference strategy was for “Mr. Du” to apply for a job transfer
1. To perform your own duty and refuse any extra work

Age
18-25 years 0.009 * * 0.174
$33 years (R)
Self appraised interaction adeptness
Be awkward at interpersonal relationship 0.006 * * 3.525
Be good at interpersonal relationship (R)
3. To hide Mr. Su’s extra assignments from Mr. Li and try to complete the
extra tasks in your spare time
Age
18-25 years 0.001 * * 0.223
26-32 years 0.000 * * 0.204
$33 years (R)
5. To perform the tasks first and then consult with Mr Su and Mr Li later
Age
18-25 years 0.000 * * * 0.300
$33 years (R)
Ownership
State-owned/run enterprise 0.019 * 0.413
Government and non-profit (R)
Notes: *p , 0.05; * *p , 0.01; Conflict managing character: Little Guo, the assistant of Mr. Li. Table VI.
(R) ¼ Reference Category. Option 6 “Try to do as more work as possible and say as fewer words as MLR of conflict
possible in order of importance of the work to satisfy both sides” was the reference conflict management strategies in
management strategy conflict 1.2
IJCMA (e.g. a passive strategy at a personal cost). As shown in Table VII, Region was the only
23,4 significant predictor of options 1 and 4 (deferring to the supervisor’s arrangement but
making further plans; collaborating with a peer to inform the upper management of the
company about the situation). As “Mr Du,” eastern Chinese respondents were more
likely than those in West China to prefer these two options to the reference strategy
(the odds ratios were greater than 1). Eastern Chinese seemed to strive for their own
398 benefits instead of meekly resigning to their boss’ will.
Conflict 3.2 describes the conflict between a subordinate (Little Cui) and his
supervisor (Mr Zhang); the reference conflict management strategy was for Little Cui to
apply for a job transfer (an avoidance-like, harmony-preserving strategy at a personal
cost). Table VIII shows that age was the only significant predictor of options 1-4. As
“Little Cui,” participants older than 33 years of age preferred other strategies (from
avoiding to seeking third-party intervention) to the reference strategy of completely
giving up, whereas the younger participants were more likely to adopt a passive
attitude (the odds ratio was greater than 1).
Conflict 5 refers to a subordinate’s (Little Zheng) dilemma: his supervisor (Mr. Liu)
was abusing his power for personal gains. The reference strategy was for “Little
Zheng” to distance himself from Mr Liu, avoiding getting involved in Mr Liu’s
dealings. This is an indirect conflict-management strategy which is not equivalent to
any conflict coping style in Blake and Mouton’s (1964) typology. Table IX shows that
Work Experience significantly predicted options 2 and 5 (i.e. keeping his silence or
reporting to the higher authority; finding evidence and anonymously reporting Mr
Liu’s behaviors). As “Little Zheng,” less experienced workers were more likely to prefer
these two strategies to the reference strategy (the odds ratios were greater than 1) than
more experienced workers (more than 11 years of work experience). These workers
would exert some efforts to disclose the supervisor’s unethical behaviors but not at
personal costs. Region significantly predicted option 4: Eastern Chinese were more
likely to prefer the reference strategy to becoming a whistle blower than their
counterparts in West China.
Taken together, the findings from these four conflict incidents partially supported
H2. Overall, as a subordinate, most participants would try to resolve the conflict with
1. To defer to Mr Zhang’s arrangements and make a smooth transition of

work duties on the one hand; but on the other hand, you try to get a clear
picture of what the matter is to make further plans
Region
East China 0.009 * * 2.725
West China (R)
4. To encourage Little Cui or join Little Cui to inform the higher authorities
in the company about the situation
Region
Table VII. East China 0.001 * * 4.841
Multinomial logistic West China (R)
regression of conflict
management strategy in Notes: *p , 0.05; * *p , 0.01; Conflict managing character: Mr Du, a subordinate; (R) ¼ Reference
conflict 3.1 Category. “To apply for a job transfer” was the reference conflict management strategy choice
Conflict
management
1. To submit to Mr. Zhang’s arrangements and make a smooth work shift
for you are confident in your relations with Mr. Zhang
strategies
Age
18-25 years 0.013 * 3.720
$33 years (R)
2. To take a passive attitude in making the work shift while remaining 399
unperturbed until Mr Zhang shows his concerns over that and has a talk
with you
Age
18-25 years 0.000 * * * 11.308
26-32 years 0.010 * 4.658
$33 years (R)
3. To talk directly with Mr Zhang, requesting to do your original job
Age
18-25 years 0.045 * 3.222
26-32 years 0.002 * * 3.948
$33 years (R)
4. To encourage Mr Du or join Mr Du to inform the higher authorities in
the company about the situations
Table VIII.
Age
18-25 years $ 33 years (R) 0.005 * * 5.589 Multinomial logistic
Notes: *p , 0.05; * *p , 0.01. Conflict managing character: Little Cui, a subordinate; R ¼ Reference management strategy in
category; Option 6 “To apply for a job transfer” was the reference conflict management strategy choice conflict 3.2

2. To keep silent about that or inform the higher authorities about the
situation, depending on how serious the situation is
Work experience
#3 years 0.027 * 2.053
$11 years (R)
4. To disclose Mr Liu’s doing directly
Province
East China 0.022 * 0.327
West China (R)
5. To find evidence and disclose the situation anonymously, or wait for the
right time to do so
Work experience
#3 years 0.001 * * 5.637
4-10 years 0.009 * * 3.371
$11 years (R) Table IX.
Notes: *p , 0.05; * *p , 0.01; Conflict managing character: Little Zheng. R ¼ Reference category; regression of conflict
Option 6 “To draw a clear line between yourself and Mr Liu to avoid getting involved” was the management strategy in
reference conflict management strategy choice conflict 5
their superior in an indirect manner, sometimes even at a personal cost. That was
particularly true among older and more interaction adept workers, or among workers
from East China. Younger, less interaction adept individuals would confront their boss
directly though.
IJCMA Managing a conflict with a peer
23,4 H3 predicted that “peers” tended to use a broad spectrum of strategies to resolve a
conflict with a colleague. This hypothesis was tested by conflicts 2, 6, and 7.
Conflict 2 pertains to a conflict between two colleagues (Little Zhang and Little Xie)
regarding the latter’s poor habit of shirking his duties and cutting corners. The
reference strategy option was for “Little Zhang” to try and encourage “Little Xie” to
400 perform his due responsibilities (a direct and assertive strategy, requiring a
confrontation with the colleague). Table X shows that Gender was a significant
determinant for options 1 and 4. In the role of Little Zhang, men were more likely than
women to prefer option 1 (turning a blind eye to the whole situation and shouldering
Little Xie’s responsibilities for him; a harmony-preserving strategy but at a personal
cost) to the reference strategy. However, women were more likely than men to prefer
the reference strategy to option 4 (clarifying Little Zhang’s own duties before
performing any more tasks, a harmony-preserving strategy without a personal cost).
Work experience was a significant predictor for option 1: Respondents with less than
three years of experience were less likely to prefer this option to the reference strategy
than those with 11 or more years of experience (the odds ratio was less than 1). In other
words, less experienced workers were more willing to confront a lazy colleague.
Region was a significant predictor for Options 1, 2, 3 and 4 in conflict 2.
Participants from East China were more likely than those from West China to prefer
options 3 and 4 (alerting the upper management or clarifying their own duties) to the
more confrontative reference strategy option (the log odds ratios were all greater than
1). It seems that Eastern Chinese considered Little Xie’s behaviors unreasonable, but
they would rather seek a third-party intervention or protect themselves from any
potential harm caused by their colleague’s irresponsibility than confront the colleague
themselves. Eastern Chinese also preferred the avoidance strategy (option 1) to the
reference strategy. Employees from Central China were also more likely than those
from West China to prefer options 1 and 2 to the reference strategy (the log odds
ratios were both greater than 1). One possible explanation is because West China is
relatively less industrialized than East and Central China. Therefore, Western Chinese
might be more direct and view Little Xie’s conduct as anything that needs to be dealt
with.
Self-Appraised interaction adeptness was a significant predictor of options 1, 2, 4
and 5. Those who reported a lower level of interaction adeptness were more likely than
those with a higher level of adeptness to prefer these four different options to the
reference strategy (the log odds ratios were all greater than 1). Last, Education was a
significant predictor of the choice of option 4 (clarifying one’s job duties). Respondents
with less than an associate degree were more likely than those with a college degree to
prefer the reference strategy to option 4 (the log odds ratio was less than 1).
Conflict 6 refers to the conflict between two colleagues, Mr. Fan, who was
industrious but bullied at work, and Mr. Du, the bully. The reference strategy was for
“Mr. Fan” to find other ways out of the situation. This strategy involves Mr. Fan’s
acknowledgement of the problem and trying to resolve it, an indirect strategy not
equivalent to any of Blake and Mouton’s (1964) typology. Table XI shows that Region
significantly predicted option 1. As “Mr. Fan,” Eastern Chinese were more likely than
Western Chinese to prefer the strategy of ignoring Mr. Du’s bullying and continuing to
work diligently (an avoiding strategy) to the reference strategy (the odds ratio was
Conflict
management
1. To turn a blind eye to the whole situation and shoulder Little Xie’s strategies
responsibilities without any thought to personal gains and losses
Gender
Male 0.021 * 2.020
Female (R)
Work experience
401
#3 years 0.030 * 0.417
$11 years (R)
Region
East China 0.008 * * 2.357
Central China 0.005 * * 4.085
West China (R)
Be awkward at interpersonal relationship 0.000 * * * 3.728
2. To remind Little Xie to watch his own conduct
Region
Central China 0.038 * 2.469
West China (R)
Be awkward at interpersonal relationship 0.014 * 1.881
3. To report Little Xie’s conduct to other colleagues or leaders
Region
East China 0.001 * * 3.255
West China (R)
4. To make your duties clear before performing any task
Gender
Male 0.028 * 0.634
Female (R)
Education
Below associate degree 0.000 * * * 0.454
Region
East China 0.035 * 1.574
West China (R)
5. To imitate Little Xie in cutting corners
Be good at interpersonal relationship (R) Table X.
Notes: *p , .05; * *p , 0.01; Conflict managing character: Little Zhang; (R)=Reference category; regression of conflict
Option 6 “Try to encourage Little Xie’s initiative to do his due work” was the reference conflict management strategy in
management strategy choice conflict 2
greater than 1). Age was also a significant predictor: Younger respondents (between 18
and 25 years old) were more likely than those older than 33 years to select option 3
(continuing to work hard if there was a possibility of getting a promotion or a better
treatment).
IJCMA
23,4
1. To ignore Mr Du’s conduct and continue to work diligently, trusting
your leaders and colleagues to figure out about the situation
Region
East China 0.009 * * 3.391
402 West China(R)
3. To continue to work hard if there is a possibility of getting a promotion
or better treatment; otherwise, try to let Mr Du share a bigger portion of
the work
Age
Table XI. 18-25 years 0.006 * * 5.457
Multinomial logistic $ 33 years (R)
management strategy in Notes: *p , 0.05; * *p , 0.01; Conflict managing character: Mr Fan, the younger worker; R ¼ Reference
conflict 6 category; Option 6 “To find other ways out” was the reference conflict management strategy choice
Conflict 7 refers to the conflict between two colleagues: “Little Zhou” found out that
“Little Lu” engaged in plagiarism. The reference strategy was for Little Zhou to
blackmail Little Lu. No significant results were obtained.
In sum, H3 was partially supported: in three out of four conflict scenarios,
participants’ choices of conflict management strategies did vary, encompassing both
indirect and direct ways to deal with a peer-to-peer conflict in the workplace. Individual
characteristics of respondents moderated these choices.
Managing a conflict with an organization

Although not hypothesized, conflict 8 refers to the dilemma of “Little Duan” in his
organization. Little Duan would receive the title of the “Excellent Employee of the
Year” for two consecutive years under the new merit system. But he knew another
colleague in the department (Little Chen) could have received this award under the
former rotational system. The reference strategy for “Little Duan” was to contend for
the award secretly. Table XII shows that age significantly predicted options 1, 2 and 4
(offering to give up the year’s award; not doing anything to support or contend the
award being given to Little Chen; proposing to reform the award system). Younger
respondents (less than 32 years of age) were more likely than older ones to select the
reference strategy to the other two options (the odds ratios were less than 1), possibly
because younger Chinese had a stronger sense of entitlement and self-righteousness.
Self-appraised interaction adeptness significantly predicted options 2 and 3. Those
who identified themselves as awkward at interaction were more likely to prefer these
two options, which were equivalent to Blake and Mouton’s (1964) compromising style
(giving up the award; letting things be); the odds ratios were greater than 1. Ownership
was also a significant predictor for option 2: workers of state-owned enterprises were
more likely than those working for non-profit organizations to prefer letting things be
(the odds ratio was greater than 1).
Discussion
Recent cross-cultural conflict management research has raised the need for conducting
emic, culture-specific studies (e.g. Holt and DeVore, 2005; Kim et al., 2007) to further the
Conflict
management
1. To offer to give up this year’s award opportunity strategies
Age
18-25 years 0.000 * * * 0.104
26-32 years 0.016 * 0.346
$33 years (R) 403
Self-appraised interaction adeptness
2. To let things be but neither offering to give up the award nor
contending for it
Age
18-25 years 0.046 * 0.522
$33 years (R)
Ownership
State-owned/run enterprise 0.013 * * 2.788
Government and non-profit (R)
3. To decide whether to contend for it or to defer to the company rotation
method, depending on how you look at the new regulations and whether
you are on good terms with Little Chen and your superiors
4. To take the initiative to propose a reform of the original “rotation”
award method
Age
18-25 years 0.010 * * 0.402 Table XII.
$33 years (R) Multinomial logistic
Notes: *p , 0.05; * *p , 0.01; Conflict managing character: Little Duan. R ¼ Reference category; management strategy in
Option 6 “To contend for it secretly” was the reference conflict management strategy choice conflict 8
understanding of Asian employees’ conflict management strategies in their

Confucian-influenced organizations. Therefore, we conceptualized Chinese conflict
management behaviors as contingent on workers’ judgment of the nature of work
relations and available resources (e.g. Hwang, 1997), as well as participants’ individual
characteristics. We hypothesized that Chinese employees would adopt complex and/or
interactive conflict management strategies when they played varying organizational
roles (e.g. being a supervisor, a subordinate, or a colleague). Moreover, we speculated
about the mitigating influences of Chinese individual characteristics such as age, sex,
education, work experience, etc.
Conflict-managing supervisors
As predicted, Chinese employees’ choice of conflict management strategies suitable for
a situation was indeed based on the organizational position of the conflict-managing
character. Consistent with Kim et al. (1999) and Wang et al. (2007), we found that in all
IJCMA conflict incidents pertaining to a supervisor-subordinate conflict, respondents were
23,4 more comfortable in choosing conflict-managing actions that directly engaged the
other party, asserting their hierarchical power to a certain extent, particularly when
participants were older, had more work experiences or a higher level of education,
which is understandable. The interesting implication is that, when Chinese are younger
or have less of these individual characteristics, their conflict managing behaviors
404 might be likely to conform to the cultural norms regardless of the organizational higher
echelon of their role.
A somewhat surprising finding was that men as a supervisor were more likely than
women to endorse passive conflict management strategies, even withdrawing from a
conflict situation voluntarily. However, this finding was consistent with gender
differences found in the broad conflict management literature: men generally used
more avoiding-denial conflict-coping styles than women (e.g. Cingöz-Ulu and Lalonde,
2007; Haferkamp, 1991). A possible explanation for this gender difference is that there
are few Chinese women at the managerial or top executive level in corporations,
governmental agencies, even in education systems (Kanter, 1993). Therefore, any
woman who manages to reach a leadership position tends to be stronger, more
assertive than even some men. She would not shy from engaging in direct conflict
resolutions. This explanation is substantiated with some empirical evidence: Asian
American women in general are usually called “a dragon lady” to indicate that they are
strong, capable and assertive leaders, managers and/or professionals (Lott and Pian,
1979). Peking University (2006) surveyed Chinese women executives and reported that
they perceived themselves very positively: about 80 percent perceived themselves as
energetic; more than 50 percent believed that they are diligent, considerate, decisive,
helpful and intelligent.
Conflict-managing subordinates
We speculated that Chinese workers in the role of a subordinate’s having a conflict
with their superior would be most likely to adhere to the culturally acceptable Li and
Ren concepts (Hwang, 1997) to avoid offending the superior and escalating the conflict.
For example, they would choose to endure the situation in silence. If speaking up, they
would do so via an indirect communication channel, or they might pretend to yield to
their supervisor. Our findings were consistent with our prediction and in line with Kim
et al.’s (1999) qualitative findings, but only when participants had certain individual
characteristics. Generally, older or more interaction adept respondents showed a
higher conformity level with the socially acceptable norms of conflict-managing
behaviors when dealing with their boss, whereas younger, less interaction adept
Chinese tended to engage in direct, confronting resolutions (perhaps unwisely so).
Interestingly, workers from East China, a relatively developed and industrialized
region tended to rely on institutions to resolve conflicts with their supervisor more than
their counterparts in other regions. This finding might be due to the effect of regional
discrepancies in terms of industrialization levels and, hence, different work habits.
There have been different regional development policies in China which resulted in
discrepancies in economic development among the regions; for example, the per capital
GDP of East China was almost twice of that of West China in 1999, though the
economic distance between two regions has narrowed down in 2008 (The Government
Website of Shaanxi Province, 2010). It is possible that Eastern Chinese have learned the
effectiveness of following the organizational hierarchy in communications, which Conflict
might explain our findings. management
strategies
Conflict-managing peers
Last but not least, we tested Hwang’s (1993) notion that, when a work relationship at
stake is horizontal (between colleagues), Chinese might not be restrained in their choice
conflict managing strategies. They would adjust their action decision based on their
405
motivation and the rules of reciprocity and using force when courteousness fails (see
Chen and Xiao, 1993). We did find some partial support for this hypothesis: In most
cases, Chinese endorsed a variety of strategies depending on their individual
characteristics. Again, gender differences emerged: although both men and women
preferred certain harmony-preserving strategies, men were more likely than women to
completely avoid the conflict. Eastern Chinese showed more flexibility and
professionalism in dealing with a peer conflict than those in other regions, possibly
because of the higher development level of this region.
Limitations and future directions

A limitation of this study was the lower rate of usable data (less than 50 percent of the
initial sample) and the lack of random sampling to have a more representative sample
of Chinese employee participants. Nevertheless, our initial response rate was high and
our final rate was comparable with that in most cross-cultural conflict management
studies using a non-western sample. Our large sample size provided statistical power
to conduct the MLA analyses.
Another possible limitation is that the study design used hypothetical conflict
scenarios. One might question whether the findings could be generalizable to the real
world. For example, participants role-playing a supervisor were directive because they
might assume that what they should be, but Chinese managers might not behave that
way. However, this result was consistent with the qualitative findings by Kim et al.
(1999) when they interviewed actual Chinese managers, for instance, suggesting
generalizability of our findings. Scenario-based techniques have been widely used in
various fields of research, from conflict management, leadership development, health
care decision-making, to computer-human interaction, to name a few (e.g. Avolio et al.,
2010; Brauer et al., 2009; Carroll, 2000; Doucet et al., 2009; Godet, 1987). The advantage
is that scenarios are useful in eliciting cognitive process information in complex
decision problems, particularly when other research methods are deficient,
inappropriate or unethical to manipulate (e.g. in field experiments or natural
observation studies). Specifically, strong organizational conflicts may not be daily
occurrences, nor can employees’ conflict management actions easily observed or
quantified in a field setting.
Biases such as experimenter bias in the scenario development and social desirability
in responses might explain some variance in the findings. These limitations were
possible but not probable in the present study: We asked multiple subject matter
experts with varying work experience levels to create multiple conflict critical
incidents and alternatives that have content validity. Further, although a large
proportion of respondents returned their surveys, their responses were anonymously
and they were allowed to skip items if they so desired. The much smaller portion of
IJCMA usable surveys that we retained for subsequence analyses indicated that the social
23,4 desirability bias might be minimal.
Future studies may consist of a follow-up laboratory experiment to test possible
within-participants variation in the choice of conflict management strategies,
particularly possible underlying mechanisms for a choice of conflict coping strategy
(e.g. why they choose which strategy). Hwang (1997) describes the motives, cost and
406 benefits of upholding Ren (forbearance, or controlling/suppressing individual emotion,
desire and psychological impulse) in conflict resolution among Chinese, as well as
external factors that may moderate one’s conflict-managing actions. One’s motives
may range from trying to maintain interpersonal harmony as the utmost goal, trying to
balance between harmony and a personal goal, to just disregarding interpersonal
harmony altogether to pursue a driving personal goal. Accordingly, Chinese may
choose among several possible courses of actions:
.
they may avoid the conflict situation altogether, enduring it, or compromising by
yielding a few steps;
. they may pretend to follow the other party’s goal or obey the other’s command
but secretly pursue their own goal; or
.
they may choose to confront the other party, engaging them in a quarrel and thus
severing the relationship.
The implication is that one’s motive predicts the variability in choice of conflict coping
strategies.
In addition to demographic variables, future research should also examine the
moderating effects of organizational echelon of conflict parties, and the nature of
conflict types (task, process, or relationship), an aspect of conflict management that we
have not investigated in the scope of the present study. As aforementioned, a type to
each conflict could be classified as task-related, relationship-related, or work
process-related conflict (De Dreu and Weingart, 2003; Jehn, 1997; Jehn and Mannix,
2001). For example, a task-related conflict refers to two parties’ disagreement about a
task they need to perform. A work relationship-related conflict refers to how the
relationship between two parties may be abused, misused, or may become an obstacle
for a party in his decision-making process or task performance. A work process-related
conflict refers to two parties’ disagreeing with each other about how something needs
to get done at work. Given Chinese cultural norms, we speculate that there may be
differential reactions to an organizational conflict based on the relationship-based type
of conflict (e.g. the strategy choice might be mainly to preserve harmony and maintain
the relationship at stake) versus one based on tasks or a work process (e.g. there might
be more variation in choices).
Because the gender of conflict managing characters in our scenarios were kept
constant (male characters only), future research might also explore the gender effect on
the outcome. Specifically, researchers may investigate whether there are differential
selection of conflict management strategies for female characters (e.g. due to
participants’ possible ambivalent or benevolent sexism) as opposed to male characters.
Theoretical and practical implications

We provided the evidence for a different perspective of Chinese conflict resolution,
shifting from a universal set of conflict coping styles to the contingency framework of
conflict resolution strategies. The implication is that Chinese do change their strategies Conflict
to suit the context of an organizational conflict (i.e. positions of conflicting parties). management
Typical harmony-preserving conflict strategies were still observed, which is
understandable in a Confucian culture with strong communications norms and strategies
practices. But other norms (such as using power and retaliation when necessary) seem
to interact with organizational status and individual characteristics as well.
In this light, the mixed findings in previous cross-cultural or culture-specific studies 407
(as previously reviewed) become understandable. For example, Kim et al. (1999) found
that organizational leaders used assertive conflict resolving strategies in dealing with
their subordinates, whereas Wang et al. (2007) found that company leaders were
inclined to strive for win-win resolutions. It is possible that the seemingly different
conflict coping styles reflect the malleable nature of conflict coping options based on
the context of the conflict itself. We also found preliminary evidence for the impact of
individual characteristics on Chinese workers’ adoption of strategies, a line of research
that has not been adequately studied and should be further examined.
Organizational conflicts are inherent in organizational processes and outcomes
(Rahim, 2001) and optimal conflict management could be beneficial for organizations
(Tjosvold, 1997). Our findings may help international organizations operating in China
to learn how to help resolve employee conflicts in a flexible and effective manner.
Understanding the flexibility of conflict management strategies in various
organizational contexts of Chinese workers would help organizations to facilitate
conflict resolutions. The conflict scenarios, incidents and strategies that we developed
in the present study may be used to diagnose and/or train employees to analyze a
conflict, exposing root problems underlying the conflict, and selecting a suitable
solution(s) depending on individual and organizational factors.
Conclusion
In sum, our findings support the fascinating complex interaction patterns between the
conflict situational factor and individual differences as far as choices of a conflict
coping strategy are concerned in the workplace in China, which contributes to the
international conflict management literature. Specifically, we found no “best practices”
adopted (e.g. conflict parties’ positions dictating choices). These findings supported our
premise of Chinese conflict management strategy as a construct contingent on
respondents’ judgment of situations. These findings also called for a
re-conceptualization of conflict management strategies as a situation-specific and
culture-specific construct.
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About the authors

Hannah-Hanh D. Nguyen is an Assistant Professor of Industrial-Organizational Psychology for
the Department of Psychology at California State University, Long Beach, in the USA. She is the
pro-term chair of the M.S. Industrial-Organization Psychology program at CSULB. She is also an
adjunct faculty for the Department of Health Care Administration. Nguyen is currently a
Research Fellow at the Center for Multicultural Psychology Research at Michigan State
University, and a part-time Research Scientist at the Center for Innovation and Strategic Human
Resource Management at Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, P.R. China. She has
recently published in the Journal of Applied Psychology, Human Performance, Negotiation and
Conflict Management Research, and African and Asian Studies. Her current research interests
include Asian entrepreneurs’ psychological profile, the effect of social networking websites on
job-seeking behaviors, Asian conflict management strategies, and organizational stigma against
workers who nap. Hannah-Hanh D. Nguyen is the corresponding author and can be contacted at:
hnguyen@csulb.edu
IJCMA Jie Yang is a Professor of Industrial-Organizational Psychology for the School of Business
Administration at Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, Nanchang in P.R. China. He is
23,4 the Executive Director of the Research Center for Innovation and Strategic Human Resource
Management at Jiangxi University of Finance and Economics, P.R. China. He has recently
published in Studies in Science of Science, Chinese Journal of Population Science, and Chinese
Journal of Management. His current research interests include innovation and knowledge
management, the mechanism of human resource management practice on knowledge worker’s
412 organizational and professional identification, and Asian conflict management strategies. His
past research interests include the competitiveness of population, the evolution of psychological
contract, workplace deviance, and performance appraisal.
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Chinese Employees' Interpersonal Conflict Management Strategies

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Conflict refers to a struggle between at least two interdependent parties with

Conflict management strategies

Cross-cultural and culture-specific conflict management

Culture-specific strategy differences

A contingency perspective of conflict-managing strategies

Traditional communications styles and conflict-coping tendencies in China

Organizational echelon effects

Individual differences in conflict management

Conflict scenario development

Regiona Eastern 379 53.8

Managing a conflict with a subordinate

Conflict management strategy Significance Odds ratio

1. To warn Little Ye personally and urge him to observe the company

Managing a conflict with a supervisor

Conflict management strategy Significance Odds ratio

1. To perform your own duty and refuse any extra work

Conflict management strategy Significance Odds ratio

1. To defer to Mr Zhang’s arrangements and make a smooth transition of

Conflict management strategy Significance Odds ratio

Managing a conflict with an organization

understanding of Asian employees’ conflict management strategies in their

Limitations and future directions

Theoretical and practical implications

About the authors

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