Scribd Logo
Upload

Welcome to Scribd!

  • 14 views

    Conflict MGT

    Uploaded by

    sweksha singh

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content

    You might also like

    Conflict MGT

    Uploaded by

    sweksha singh
    14 views22 pages

    Original Title

    conflict mgt

    Copyright

    © © All Rights Reserved

    Available Formats

    PDF or read online from Scribd

    Did you find this document useful?

    Is this content inappropriate?

    Report this Document

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    Download as pdf
    14 views22 pages

    Conflict MGT

    Uploaded by

    sweksha singh

    Copyright:

    © All Rights Reserved
    Download as PDF or read online from Scribd
    Flag for inappropriate content
    Download as pdf
    of 22
    1 Dynamics of Conftiy em duction ava occur at various levels within the individuals, between the indiy ualsina group and between the groups. They may have important implica, on the work and effectiveness of the persons and groups involved. The and intensity of conflict varies from individual to individual, and from to group and it may put a manager in a very difficult situation, A Manage, often experiences his most uncomfortable moments when he has to deal wit conflicts or differences among people or groups of people at work. Presens of conflicts complicates his job in so many ways. Therefore, it is of grea importance that the manager should understand the conflict fully and try handle it effectively. Definition of Conflict The term ‘conflict’ is used by different people to convey different meanings For instance, ‘conflict in mind’ conveys that the individual is in a state dilemma over a certain issue and is not able to arrive at any decision. Te term ‘conflicting views’ denotes difference of opinions between two or0° Persons or groups. An advanced stage of this situation may be conveyed! the following words : ““They are in conflict’”, meaning thereby each pa'!® the conflict is planning to meet the challenge of the other. But the ‘conflict’ is notsynonymous with ‘quarrel’ and ‘fight.’ However, itrePt 4 clash in the less literal sense between goals, ideas, ideologies and * a nes may broadly be viewed as a breakdown in the Et anna making,’ Let us take the case of an int. yk st an “ ee is in a state of conflict in his mind 98 oe . on ea s neo in a given situation, In case of inter-individe® pe dows of ae able to Feconcile their views and hence thers mechanism of decision-making. Similarly, in cas? o ea and inter-group, the process of conflict can be explained as © ie anit J, Louis R. Pondy, Organisati A fonal Ce ud Models. Science Quarterly, Sept. 1967, p, a Concepts a 364 : 465 vanes OF iad D +hanism between the members of the group and between sonemaking mecha flict arises when an individual or a group of ison ectively. Thus, a conflict ; i Ta in! respective vei difficulty in selecting an action alternative, igividals nail simply defines conflict as ‘the appearance of difference, Follett aise of interests.""? This definition assumes the Presence rence Of oe a opposing parties, which lends energy and investment of fition cera ; once differences are experienced as friction tothe See ened intoan experience of conflict. Follett looks at or erton toward conflict management, ie cooperation inherent in conflict situations. Inmanagement literature, the term ‘conflict’ has been used to describe : (|)antecedent conditions, €.8., scarcity of resources, policy differences among inviduals et. (2) effective states ofthe individuals involved, eg, stress, tension, hostility, anxiety, etc., (3) cognitive states of individuals, i.e., their perception of awareness of conflictful situations ; and (4) changed behaviour ranging from passive resistance to overt aggression.” We may call these the four classes of conflict. They may also represent different Stages in the development of a conflict episode. Conflict may be more easily understood ifitis considered a dynamic Process. Aconflict telationship between two or more individuals in an organisa- tion can be analysed as a Sequence of conflict episodes. Each conflict episode begins with conditions characterised by certain conflict potentials, Depending ‘pon a number of factors, their behaviour may show a variety of conflictful ‘tats. Each episode or encounter leaves an aftermath that affects the course of succeeding episode. Thus, the entire relationship can be characterised by ‘eran stable aspects of Conditions, perceptions and behaviour + Nature of Conflict Context of an Organisation, broad features of a conflict are as under : © Conftict occurs when individuals are not able to choose among the _ Available alternative Courses of action, Conflict between two individuals implies that they have conflicting tions, values and goals, Producing, integration an attitude toward the potential i) Conpicr ig 4 dynamic process as it indicates a series of events, Bach Conflict is made up of a series of interlocking conflict episodes. © Contes mus be perceived by the parties to it, If no one is aware ' Of a conflict, the is generally agreed that no conflict exists. ba 2 re Ks Follet, Creative Experience, New York, Peter Smith, 1951: 4 ane © Pond, op. sit, p. 296, Wiley & Sung, yeh and Herbert A, Simon, Organizations, New Vor, John 1958, 157, ORGANISATION THEORY AND Q Traditional View of Conflict Moy Traditionally, conflict in organisations has been vieweg ve has been considered dysfunctional primarily Because oo it could have on organisational productivity, Conflict om ‘n in productivity because groups wouldn't cooperate in geting gt and wouldn't share important information. Too much con 18 by fy = distract managers from their work and reduce the; cou ny, "Bariy Nerseet job. PF Concentra Tho classical writers believed that conflict is inheremy must be curbed. They believed that conflict indicates a Malfunctions 24 the organisation and it represents managements failure to bogey and the organisation together, For instance, Fayol advised that why is a clash between the interest of the organisation and that of the interest of the organisation must prevail.® Thus, traditional very conservative view about conflict as they considered it i advocated that conflicts must be avoided. Et an indivi writers ba. tally bad a Human Relations View of Conflict The human relationists contended that conflict is a natural Occurrence ing sroups and organisations. Since conflict is inevitable in any group ganisation, it must be resolved amicably to achieve good human resin Conflicts are bound to happen because the organisation is composed a individuals having different values, goals and perceptions, Conflicts asede to faulty policies and structure of the organisation leading to distortion ad blockage in communication. The human relationists perceived confess harmful and advised their resolution in the interest of the organisa al the individuals. Interactionist View of Conflict : Modern Viewpoint | This view is based on the belief that conflict is not only a positive force sroup but is also necessary for a group to perform effectively.© This 3 a Cncourages conflict on the ground that a harmonious; peaceful and soe group is prone to become static and non-responsive to the needs for? and innovation. It is the task of the group leader to allow conflicts (0 to keep the group viable, self-critical and creative,” He may stimulatec™ to make the group members innovative and imaginative. Howes must be kept under control to avoid their dysfunctioan! conseque™ 3 : « piu _ 5. Henri Fayol, General and Industrial Management, London, Sit 6% Sons Lid., 1949, ae _ SP. Robbins, Organizational Behaviour, New Delhi, Premice-H8 Ibid, p. 446. 367 namics OF CONFLICT, D ‘Thus, itis inappropriate to say that conflict is all good or bad. It will all Mpether the conflict is functional or dysfunctional. A functional a ‘courages the group to work for the attainment of its goals and mere performance. Buta dysfunctional conflict is destructive in nature ah hinders group performance. posiTIVE ASPECTS OF CONFLICTS Trattional management theory considers conflict as inherently bad and ramfuland recommends its suppression. But this view no longer holds good. Conflicts are inevitable in organisations where members have different per- ceptions, atitudes, values, ete. Moreover, a conflict is not altogether bad. It fascreative elements as well. Therefore, the emphasis should be on harnessing itfor improvement rather than fighting considering it harmful. The conflicting patties should approach the conflict in terms of problem solving rather than interms of ‘win-lose’. The ‘win-lose’ tendency generates hostilities, rules out constructive solutions, and the parties think in terms of sectional gains and concessions rather than mutual benefits. Modern writers feel that a minimum level of conflict is necessary in the organisation to keep the members alert and creative. Conflict is also integral to the process of change. If we look at conflict from this point of view, conflicts are supposed to serve the following functions : (i Release of Tension. Conflict provides an opportunity to the group members for releasing tension which might otherwise remain suppressed. The members get an opportunity to express themselves and obtain some psycho- logical satisfaction. This also leads to reduction of stress among the members involved in the conflict. (ti Creativity, When a group is faced with a conflict, its members display ‘teativity in identifying various alternatives. In the absence of a conflict, they ‘might not have been creative or even might have been lethargic. The conflicts mong individuals and groups often lead to innovations in policies, procedures ‘nd practices, be (ii) Stimulation of Change. At times, conflict stimulates change among apne. When they are faced with a conflict, they might change their dew si and be ready to change themselves to mect the requirements of the uation, deg’? Identification of Weaknesses, When a conflict arises, it may belp reine, the weaknesses in the system. The management can take steps to ve the weaknesses, ang ) Group Cohesiveness. Inter-group conflict brings ubout solidarity Sues yn #toup members. "The members of a group face the external pres tOhexiy edly ‘and show greater degree of group loyalty, This increases group VENOSS Which could be utilised by the management for the attainment 7 ORSANEATION THEORY aig, of organisstionsl goals in an effective manner. As ffereaces are forgotton SSS (99) Gasenge. Conflict tests the abilities end conacites ops zod oeps. It creates challenges for them for which they have and creative. If they are able to overcome the challenge, they fe gad them zeal to work herder is increased. DYSFUNCTIONS OF CONFLICTS ‘The negative consequences of conflict are not uncommon. Jos, Boonie within an individual can destroy his bility to function, sinlaty eng within en orgenisetio se sor of Blocks in decison asses Tn complex organisations, the resul from insurrection nd nis to the creeps 3 Gisinterest. For those sto wary, 5 veness, there is probably nomar clings intemal en more apparent. It my rst the existence of 2 smell ogasaiz consequences of conflicts at various levels i fee 2d below : (@ Resignation of Personnel In case of intra-individual and ime ideal confiict perdculeiy, some dynamic personnel may leave the oe ‘Soa if they fail in the resolution of conflicts in their favour. The oe will be the sufferer in the long-run by the loss of key personnel. : (@ Tensions. Conflict may create high tension among the inv and groups end 2 stage may come where itis very difficult for the mse to resolve the conflict. Excessive conflict generates feeling of sue) > ‘aimty, frustration and hostility among the members: : Discontentment. Conflict is key to bea sure of 8S te the losing party which will wait for an opportunity to seftle the the wanning perty. As a result, their productivity will suffer. ara 3 {Creation of Distrust Conic may crate acim TEs Gistrust among the people in the organisation. It may crea! aa of cooperation. The concemed people may develop negative one another and try to avoid interactions with each other. oe, {©) Goat Displacement, Confit may distract the aneatien AP pa Sonal member (rm the organisational goals. They may WEES en energy in finding tactics to come out as wingers in the ~ victory becomes more important for them than the ongaaiss™ Cal eer a 2H. Joseph Ritz, Organisational Behaviour, New Youk, Rite) pals, “ pyNAMICS OF CONFLICT (vi) Weakening of Organisation, Conflicts may weaken the organisation whole if the management is not able to handle them properly. If the : ment tries to suppress conflicts, they may acquire gigantic proportions manager stages. And if the management does not interfere in the earlier a ue unnecessary troubles might be invited at the later stag. its may create tensions among the members and an atmosphere of distrust in the organisation. Further, resignation of important personnel duc teconficts will also weaken the organisation, Conflicts do not necessarily constitute a bad thing. Whether a conflict is desirable or not, depends upon what purpose is served by it. For instance, conflicts may provide an opportunity for releasing tension which otherwise would remain suppressed. Conflicts also provide opportunity for review of existing conditions and making better alternatives acceptable to the partics concerned. Though a conflict may threaten the emotional well-being of indi- viduals, it may-also be a positive factor in personal development. It may generate a challenging spirit and make the management pool resources to accelerate the pace of progress overcoming the speedbreaker. Conflicts and problems are the price of progress. Conflicts, therefore, are not nec- essarily discouraging, but the attitude towards them can be. If handled properly, they may produce creative problem-solving situations to help the organisation achieve its goals. 'SSUES INVOLVED IN CONFLICTS Tensions and conflicts may arise due to many factors such as economic, social and psychological. Psychological factors no doubt contribute predominantly. For instance, feeling of insecurity is a potent cause of tension and conflict. It 'S generally the case that fear of insecurity is 20% financial and 80% emo- “onal. Personal earning is not solely the answer to present day's growing TLich for security. Self-knowledge and recognition, besides a source of 'velihood, will probably ensure better security. mig y omMlels may arise due to lack of considerttion, lack of appreciation, denn detstanding or bad handling of situations and problems. Though past aa ae has been credited for having made unprecedented advances in science ‘cchnology, the vast field of human relations still remains unexplored to fo ®xtent, Nevertheless, some industrial enterprises with a view to im- eign Hectivencss and to reduce conflicts, are becoming increasingly con OF thi f it and want 1o promote harmonious work relationships, As a result ;. SoBsciousness and search, we find today greater emphasis on human ns than ever before. ty l8°sing the isso isa nosebsarypre-ondiin for handing he com, Ar yghsflly, What js the nature of cnet? Why hs the const isa sage has Ue conflict reached Thess are the baaig questions 370 ORGANISATION THEORY np, must be answered before finding a solution to the eon conflict varies according to the kind of are four basic kinds of issues which are mation, accept or reject impressions of their respecti 2. Goals. Sometimes, accomplished—the desirable of a specific position within the disagreement objectives of a d the organisation. may be about lepartment, di Types of Conflict Situations Four basic types! of conflict situat; managers should be abl ‘ions exist in organisations which le to recognise. - These are discussed below re, Fanocabeu Review. Vol. 38, Mov. Dee 4300 (Don Heliriegel, John W. F CONFLICT aI STAGES IN CONFLICT ve stages of « conflict episode may be identified as : (1) latent conflict reeived conflict (3) felt conflict (4) manifest conflict, and (5) conflict 11 We shall now discuss these one by one, pinaMtics ol fi Qe aftermath. 1, Latent Conflict. At this stage, conflict is not apparent as it has not taken a clear-cut shape. It occurs in the sub-conscious mind. Some of the antecedents that establish conditions from which conflict can develop are : | @competition for scarce resource, (b) communication barrier, (c) divergence | ofsubunit goals, and (d) role ambiguities. Competition forms the basis of | conflict when the aggregate demands of participants for resources exceed the sources availabie to the organisation. Autonomy needs form the basis of conflict hen one party either seeks to exercise control over some activity that another party regards as its own province or seeks to insulate itself from such control. Goal-divergence is the source of conflict when two parties which ‘Must cooperate on some joint activity are unable to reach a consensus on soncerted action, Two or more types of latent conflicts may also be present the same time. The role conflict model treats the organisation as a coalition of role sets Ssh composed of the focal persons having different roles. Conflict is said to ny when the focal person receives incompatible role demands or expecta- “ts from the persons in his role set. The difficulty in the model is that it rake focal person as merely a passive receiver rather than an active ant in the relationship. Antecedent conditions ————} Felt Conflict Manifest conflict conflict 4 Conflict resolution or mprrestion Conflict aftermath Fig. 1. Stages of Conic Conflict, Constics way sometimes be perveived when no I conics exit ad Intent condidons way pessak in Poy. pp. 39899 2 ORGANISATION THEORY AND By relationship without any of the participants perceiving the Cong ceived conflict oecurs due to the parties’ misunderstanding gp, true position. Such a conflict can be resolved by improvin, between the parties. 3, Felt Conflict. There is an important distinction be conflict and feeling conflict. A may be aware that he is in Seri with B over some policy. But this may not make A tense OF anxious may have no effect whatsoever on A’s affection towards B, The per, ton of conflict i the mechanism which causes many people wes with dysfunctions of conflict. In other words, it makes them feel he mu There are two explanations for the personalisation of Conflict, Firs, the inconsistent demands of efficient organisation and individual STOW eae anxieties within the individual. Anxieties may also result from iden, or from extra-organisation pressure. Individuals need to vent these anxigie, in order to maintain equilibrium. Secondly, conflict becomes personal When the whole personality of the individual is involved in the rao Hostile feelings are most common in the intimate relations that characte institutions like monasteries and residential colleges. 4. Manifest Conflict. By manifest conflict is meant any of see! varieties of conflictful behaviour such as open aggression, apathy, saiie. withdrawal and perfect obedience to rules. Except for prison riots, pli! revolutions and extreme labour unrest, violence as a form of manic is rare. The motives towards violence may remain, but they tend expressed in less violent forms. . 5. Conflict Aftermath, The aftermath of a conflict may ee * Positive or negative repercussions for the organisation depending 0” seal Conflict is resolved. Ifthe conflict is genuinely resolved to the st el all participants, the basis for a more co-operative relationship re o or the participants in their drive for a more ordered relations on latent conflicts not previously perceived and dealt with. On th OF asd if the conflict is merely suppressed but not resolved, the latent antl conflict may be aggravated and explode in a more serious form rectified. This conflict episode is called ‘conflict aftermalt!”. LEVELS OF CONFLICT ‘March and Simon have classified conflicts as + @) Individual conflict, (i) Organisational conflict, and (iil). Inter-organisational contigs? oe ch og e comm! {Ween ere: ee, US disag vi 12. Ibid. se 13, James G. March and Herbest A. Simon, op. ct, Pe spares OF CONFLICT 7 : ‘These classes of conflict are discussed below : i) Individual Conflict. In this case, the individual is not in a position ke a decision about certain matter. He faces difficulty to choose out of alternative courses of action, which are either unacceptable or uncertain ie parable. The management can help the individual in sucha situation moving him counseling service. (ip Organisational Conflict. Organisational conflicts may take the form 4(@Inta-individual conflict, (b) Inter-individual conflict, (c) Intra-group conflict, and (d) Inter-group conflict. (i) Inter-Organisational Conflict, Such types of conflicts arise when there are differences of opinion over certain issues between different or- ganisations. These arise out of the daily contact between the organisations. The inter-organisational conflicts are generally resolved through bargaining process between the organisations. INTRA-INDIVIDUAL CONFLICT Inte individual conflict arises within an individual member of the organisa- tion. tis same as individual conflict described above. But the organisational pblem may be that none of the individuals has a known acceptable alterna- tive in terms of his own goals and perceptions. Thus, there is widespread ‘ucernainty and scarcity of acceptable alternatives of action. Intra-individual conflict generally arises because of ‘incongruency be- ‘'een individual goals and organisational goals and other situations where ltete is widespread uncertainty and scarcity of acceptable alternatives. Goal Smsuency occurs because the individual feels that all his personal goals = ‘ be reconciled with the organisational goals. Uncertainty in.a situation be caused by complexity of the problem and lack of past experience in ling suck: problems. Conflicts also arise because the organisational alter- ta Nt aoceptable 1 the individual, March and Simon are ofthe view : ‘vidual dissatisfaction is the outcome of disparity between aspiration 4 Pia achievements, The greater the disparity between aspiration levels vements, the higher is the probability of intra-individual conflict, ‘ : nae Syed f“PetbOnal conflict arises due {o role conflict and goal conflict dis- below ; ‘Contig fey, 188 of activities expected of @ person holding a particular position sus? Organisation," The various people who have these expectations Vehaviour of someone in a role aye considered members of the Me SPR an ‘Theory ia Gardener Lnzey (6) Handbook of Social | “elo. Cambie audnes Whey, 194, pe 223-258. 5 1 ORGANISATION THE 374 ‘ORY AND Baia i role set. Managers are part of the role sets of their subordi subordinate, the role expectations communicated by the mana, Males, By, to include instructions about desired behaviour and behaviour is a ah intentions regarding the allocation of rewards, and evaluations Moi performance. When the communication of role expectations ig gig Pi ambiguity and role conflict may occur. re Role ambiguity occurs when an individual is not certai expectations (or responsibilities) of one or more members o a person is not clear about his job duties, the resulting role ay stressful for him. He will lose his self-confidence and will dr: tion from the job. Role ambiguity arises if either the manager communicated the duties of the subordinate or the subordin: erly understood the boss. N about thy F the role set mbiguity Cay AW less sts, has not pr rate has not po. Role conflict arises when the person in a role is not able to respuady the expectations of other persons. For instance, a supervisor is caught betvee the conflicting expectations of management and workers. The role expects ns are understood, but for one reason or another, they canhot be comple! with, Role conflict is another source of potential tension that may resultinz toss of job satisfaction, decreased confidence in one’s boss, and/or a tendexy avoid the unpleasant work situation. 4 common form of conflict is role overload.'* This is a situaioa® which there are simply too many role expectations being communicates" person at 2 given time. There is too much to be done and too litle time! i Managers may create role overload for their subordinates, especially cy rely on one-way communication. When cut off from valuable fee" eis xr is hard for these managers to learn when or why a subordinate i encing stress. Four kinds of role conflict arise which are discussed below * soit (1)Intra-sender role conflict. This conflict arises when PESO 96 to do a job which he is not capable of doing or time and i ‘ot sufficient to do the job. For instance, a purchase agent is asked PY Tj gal to buy materials which are not easily available and is also ins! buy in the black market py (2) Inter-sender role conflie, Diferent role-set 2h pos? conflicting expectations from a particular member. For exame snc the supervisor to exercise strict control over subordinates: i want loose supervision. pono ihe 13) Person-role conflict. This conftict ocours whe? *P° io. ai do 2 job which ix incompatible with his own value s¥8 +. uantcs OF CONFLICT 35 on eq may be asked (0 get favours from public officials by bribing them, su system does Hot permit him to do so, 7 : 4 Inter-role conflict. Such conflict arises when an individual holds and divergent roles. For example, a worker spends overtime at the ei the order of the boss, and his family is upset as he is not devoting "etme to Une Family. ole ambiguities and conflicts can create tensions among individuals aati their attitudes and behaviours adversely. The managers should try se such situations by maintaining effective two-way communication tiple ‘omni neal members of his role sets. Goal Conflict Inte-personal conflicts also include actual or perceived pressures from in- campatible goals or expectations of the following types = (@) Approach-approach conflict. Such a conflict arises when a person tasto choose from two or more equally attractive goals. He can choose only tae goal at the cost of other. For instance, a person has to choose between sxepiing a promotion in the present organisation and taking a desirable job vith another organisation. (6) Avoidance-avoidance conflict. This conflict arises when a person tsto choose between two alternatives each with negative aspects. Both the alematives are equally unattractive. For instance, a person may dislike his eset job but the alternative of resigning and looking for another job is ‘Sly unattractive, - (©) Approach-avoidance conflict. In this type of conflict, an individuel {fed with an altemative that has both positive and negative consequences be cane, 4 person may be offered a promotion carrying much higher pay “évay from his home town. Inthe above cases, the individual will feel dissatisfied with the organiss- "& his expectations are not met by the organisation. This will lead to tuency between the individual goals and those of the organisation. th ERSONAL CONFLICT vede vidual conflict arises from differences between the choices mace Oy oma viduals in the organisation. Each individual has SSD0°08 Ng tative of action and different individuals etree a Fig jf Banivation itself creates situations in which two individuals are ue Mit swations. For instance, the quality contol inspector's job ‘ey, ‘10% in others? work, Similarly, the organisation May havo a reward : a oii performances, but performance of a individual Ming ye OP sees, Such situations ‘cause interindividual conflicts a oe | Pe £ : I i i f Oe tecetey: ORGANISATION THEORY AND py 376 ty Sources of Inter-personal Conflicts The sources of conflict are found in some degree of i a divergence of interest. At one extreme, conflict is Tooted ing Sharp i eg Patibility or head-on collision of interests. Any satisfaction op Victory ae Side means dissatisfaction or defeat for the other. In Bame theory, this lesg? case is described as a zero sum game. At the other extreme, COnflict my Footed in the interests that are different but not Necessarily jn, yy may be noted that People disagree over Compas facts, goals, methods ang ee because they have different interests and Perceptions, Actual op The important factors which contribute to inter-personal and Ven itn, Sroup conflicts are as follows : @ Informational Fa Points of view have bee: Because each of limited knowledg Gi) Difference in Perceptions. The Perceptual factors exert their aft. eros when the persons have differen of perception, each will attend to an those items which he thinks importa @ somewhat different manner. Th experience is unique to him, Thus, it may produce distinctive Perceptual uals, ctors. These exert n developed on the b; the participants has con e, they disagree, their influence when vat asis of different sets Of fact, tact with a different Set or has 3 1 images of the same stimulus, Beeae d select from the information avalibe nt. Each will interpret the informatica Picture which he gets from his o7 it is not surprising that the same basic fics Pictures in the minds of different indivi Ives becau; low ‘Brounds, F; ©, Production manager may sugges and social back, ‘or instanc ering of product quality ig increase profits, but the marketing manage?! term it unethical, Inter- ye? Personal conflicts also at “sources, For example if three @ ting Cueher vacancy, conflict may develo? ane’ them. Similarly, availability of © common telephone facility to 2 10" executives may be a source of conflict among them. iio0® q ©) Difference in Status, Each individual occupies a cert PO 9, status in the society and in the organi, we ean tion. The fac tha he osu Position or status may put certain ints on him ifthe dines ame to his role. For: example, higher level ©Xecuttive may consider it cl 10 Bo 10 4 junior exseutive ta eck ane Slarification. Such sails! also block communication which 44d (0 interindividual coll SL TEM oe ae me pynamcs OF | i) Divergent Roles. A role is a set of expectations people have about ar (or responsibilities) of a person in a position. Role conflict is ult of divergent sole expectations. It exists when the expectations of a theres and the individual cannot mect one expectation without s when the roles are so conflicting that ne es HOt jquation. sit atever may be the source of inter-personal conflict, it must be an- lysed and resolved to create an atmosphere of openness and mutual trust in i yganisaton.Inter-personal conflicts can be resolved through counselling, fective communication, win-win negotiation and transactional analysis | the technique of transactional analysis has received (TA). Over the year jal attention of the management consultants and professionals. It involves inter personal conflicts through improving inter-personal com- f transactional analysis has been discussed in resolution of munication, The me hanism of the next chapter. INTRA-GROUP CONFLICT A group consists of (wo or more person: other, have a well-defined structure of role and status relations and have a gystem of values and norms of behaviour for the smooth working of the group. Intm-group conflict arises when differences over an issue crop up between the members of the group. Intra-group conflict may arise in three ways : s who are in interaction with cach (@) when the group faces a novel problem, (6) when new values are imported from the social environment into the group, or (Q) when a person’s extra-group role comes int group role. Pai are generally members of different groups for. different at Inter-individual conflicts may gradually lead to an intra-group hale a is also po: ‘ible that in case of an intra-group conflict of serious | intro niisoabs of the group may be divided into two groups and, thus, the fn 1p Conflict may be transformed into inter-group conflict. “the Broup conflict is like an inter-personal conflict with the difference Persons involved in the conflict episode belong to a common group. ilar to those of inter-personal 10 conflict with his intra- a j i Sie Of intu-group conflicts are si GROUP CONFLICT Bo gy itveen different groups in the organisation are known as inter~ A conflict between production team and marketing team is ek has" ly, Org guizational Behaviour, Homewood, Richard D. Irwin, Ine, 1974. a ORGANISATION THEORY AND 9; Bt Nf an example of inter-group conflict. Such conflicts arise ie AV the existence of a positive felt need for joint decision-making () ty differentiation of goals, ie., different persons have different eo thay goals ; and (c) there is difference in perceptions of. reality." These ety are prerequisites of inter-group conflict to arise because there y, it difficulty in decision-making if all the people have common views ae bey and think alike. Similarly there is no chance of a conflict if the resi, h feel the need of joint decision-making even though there are differs"! F A ferent yi about goals and/or different perceptions. Vien, Besides the above three factors, intergroup conflicts may also bet by task ambiguity, differences in work orientation and conficing Hi system. These factors are discussed below : (1) Joint Deciston-making. The need for joint decision-making if because of the following factors : (A) Sharing of resources. The resources at the disposal of the ora: tion are limited and they have to be shared by different groups. Eat group wants a greater share of the limited resources. (ii) Inter-dependeney. Interdependency of various departments r- quires decisions regarding sharing of resources and fixing of ste ules for the completion of various jobs. For instance, there may’ misunderstanding between marketing and production departnets if the latter is not able to complete an order as desired by the fora (iii) Need for coordination. Coordination at the higher levels rae joint decision-making by various departmental heads. If te) not able to pool their knowledge and resources effectively. © are likely to arise. oa Conflicts often arise in the organisation because every 810% Mj higher share of the organisational resources and does not want (007s the problems and limitations of other groups. Competitidn amon8 py. groups or departments may lead to high tensions on certain 0°35 gsr ferent groups may engage themselves in the power struggle in rsee® tion. Some groups may even work for stalling the introduction organisation which are necessary to maintain its viability. ys a (2) Difference in Goals, Various groups differ in thelr ‘organisational goals because ofthe following reasons +, agit () There are differences in sub-goals of various Boe a member of various groups, he may face role cons” og vai of the organisation are different from the § groups. I we 47. James G.Mareh and Herbert A; Simon, op, cit. aia ii je. Edgar H. Schein, Organizational. Psychology ‘Prentice-Hall, 1970, p, 92. ts on CONT : . x9 : .» Individuals who are members of different groups GMO famity (Be geround, culture, education, training, etc. Professionals tog 3 the organisational goals from their respective professional point o¢ view. Thus, conflicts over goals arise. Wi Division of work and departmentation may lead to certain groups which might internalise their group goals. They may not be able to relate their group goals to the organisational goals which might be highly non-operational or vague. {q) Pattern of interaction among the group members may lead to dif- ferentiation of goals. For example, if people in a group do not interact frequently, there is bound to be differentiation of goals. But if the group members interact quite often, they are likely to share some goals with the other groups. @Difference in Perceptions. Difference in perceptions of people arise seawse of the following factors : () When people differ in their views about goals, perceptions are bound to be different. (i Perceptions of people imay differ because of differences in back- ground factors such as family background, culture, education, train- ing, etc. The value system also influences the perception of people 0 a great extent. (ii) People may have different perceptions or if the flow of information isnot smooth. Lack or inadequacy of information with some people ba bound to affect their perceptions. ae Ambiguity. Inter-group conflict is likely to arise when it is om ob panet oun is responsible for certain activities. This lack of clarity Ponsibilities is called task ambiguity, and it frequently leads to tach pe work groups. Important job duties fall between the cracks, rcmings is upset with the other for what it perceives to be the other’s “suemal eg jek ambiguity often arises when the firm is growing fastly or Tak sp oneal is changing rapidly. Set of 5 Buity leading to intergroup conflict may occur in the recruit- ‘mployees. Both the personnel department and the specific ey ili; ha nus, -, Marketing, operations, finance) of a firm have Selection on ing ; identifying candidates, interviewing candidates, be it ions, etc. Sometimes, there is conflict over who has. 4 oe besoney make and execute selection decisions. Final offers are Pappa 4nd the functional areas each assert what they.perceive BS Weg, Ne elerencg ‘se ‘Work, sd Work Orientation. The ways in which employees deal with others vary widely cross functional depart- Stason Firat: i i er ¥, functional groups differ in their sime aE 380 ORGANISATION THEORY ANp ay Mi ives. For example, research and development (R & D) sia ea ape rags goals than do manufacturing groups. §; Second ri of different fantional groups vary greatly. The goals ofa mani int are more specific than the goals of an R & D unit: manufacturing pa targets for volume, cost savings, and percentage of defectives While Re has much broader and less easily measurable goals such as Seveloig products and suggesting potential market applications, Thirdly, the int Ney sonal orientations of people in different departments vary, R & Diab” and encourage a level of informality, an organic structure, and q Collegial that might be dysfunctional in a manufacturing department, iy ‘The greater the differences in goal, time, and interpersonal between two work units, the more likely it is that conflict will aris them when they have to coordinate their work efforts. These work orientation lead groups to be frustrated with, and to misinterpret ty behaviour of other groups. This explains why there are frequent cons, among the purchase, production, finance and marketing departments, (©) Organisational Reward System. Inter-group conflicts aso aie because of the way in which an organisation monitors group performance: distributes rewards—both economic and non-economic. If the reward sjsea allows only one group to accomplish its goal at the expense of other group, there are bound to be conflicts and even Power struggle among the groups. For instance, an organisation may reward the sales unit for higher sales. Te advertisement group and production group who are denied the rewards 3! feel bad and develop conflicts with the sales unit and may even sabotage efforts of the sales unit in achieving higher sales turnover. MODES OF HANDLING CONFLICT For the resolution of various types of conflicts in an organisation, °° methods have been suggested, st For instance, Thompsori suggested five™

    You might also like