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www. pdst. ie Managing Conflict

www. pdst. ie Sources of Human Conflict Inconsistency Dishonesty Inflexibility Afraid to make decisions Poor communication Lack of punctuality Unreasonableness Self-interest over others Superiority viewpoint Failure to use empathy Self-centered behaviour Lack of trust Unrealistic expectations Lack of shared recognition “Forgetting” of commitments Attitude of not caring Lack of accountability Refusal to admit errors Refusal to listen Lack of enthusiasm Lack of respect for others

www. pdst. ie Conflict Management “Working together isn’t always easy”

www. pdst. ie What is Conflict? Conflict is “an expressed struggle between at least two parties who perceive incompatible goals, scarce resources, and interference from others in achieving their goals” (Wilmot and Hocker 1998) We must remember that: It is a reality of everyday life It does cause us anxiety and stress It can be minimised, diverted and resolved

www. pdst. ie Situations that might create conflict… Misunderstandings Personality Clashes Lack of Cooperation Frustration and Irritability Substandard Performance Differences Over Work Method Responsibility Issues Authority Issues Value and Goal Differences Non-Compliance with Rules and Policies Competition for Limited Resources

www. pdst. ie Activity : How do you deal with conflict? Answer the quiz questions. Does it offer you a pattern of your own behaviour in conflict situations?

www. pdst. ie Responding to Conflict Conflict challenges us to learn about ourselves and others, but we will not learn if we cannot control the gut reactions some people and situations set off in us. (Crawley, J. 1998)

www. pdst. ie Conflict Iceberg

www. pdst. ie In a Conflict Situation... Listen, don’t react or argue Buy time to think Summarise and ask interested questions Build relationships Handle the feelings

www. pdst. ie Group Activity Read one of the following scenarios As an individual, decide how you would handle the situation Share your strategy with rest of group Feedback

www. pdst. ie It’s all in the mind… People will forget what you said People will forget what you did But people will never forget how you made them feel

www. pdst. ie Creative Ways to Manage Conflict Accept that conflict is going to happen Deal with one issue at a time Choose the right time to resolve the conflict Avoid reacting to unintentional remarks Avoid quick resolutions Agree to disagree Do not insist on being right! Avoid expanding the problem

www. pdst. ie Thank You