What is conflict?

Direct opposition, a clash or disagreement between peopleConflicts are experienced at home, work, social recreation and officiating a contestAs long as you have people dealing with people, making decisions or meeting deadlines - you will have conflict

Conflict management

Conflict management is the practice of identifying and handling conflict

in a sensible, fair and efficient manner.

Perspective in conflicts

Traditional perspective.

Contemporary prospective.

Realistic prospective

General causes of conflicts

Poorly defined goalsDivergent personal valuesLack of cooperation/trustCompetition of scarce resourcesUnclear roles/lack of job descriptionCommunication failure Personality conflict

Effects of conflict in organizations

StressAbsenteeismStaff turnoverDe-motivationNon-productivity

Types of conflict

Task conflict.

Relationship conflict.

Process conflict.

Ways of addressing conflict Five basic ways of addressing conflict were identified by Thomas and Kilman in 1976:Accommodation _surrender one's own needs and wishes to accommodate the other party. Avoidance – avoid or postpone conflict by ignoring it, changing the subject, etc. Avoidance can be useful as a temporary measure to buy time or as an expedient means of dealing with very minor, non-recurring conflicts. In more severe cases, conflict avoidance can involve severing a relationship or leaving a group.Collaboration – work together to find a mutually beneficial solution. While the Thomas Kilman grid views collaboration as the only win-win solution to conflict, collaboration can also be time-intensive and inappropriate when there is not enough trust, respect or communication among participants for collaboration to occur. Compromise – bring the problem into the open and have the third person present. The aim of conflict resolution is to reach agreement and most often this will mean compromise.Competition – assert one's viewpoint at the potential expense of another. It can be useful when achieving one's objectives outweighs one's concern for the relationship.

Methods to deal with conflicts

Competition (win-lose situation)Accommodation (win-win situation)Avoidance (lose-lose situation)Compromise (lose-lose situation)Collaboration (win-win situation)

Conflict Table

Win-Win Lose-Win

Win-Lose Lose-Lose

I win I lose

You win

You lose

LEVELS OF CONFLICTINFORMAL

More often handled quickly, less noticeable by others - quick comments to coaches and participants

FORMAL Need,s more attention more skills

necessary to resolve or understand what the coach, player or official has heard or seen

How to prevent conflicts

Frequent meeting of your teamAllow your team to express openlySharing objectivesHaving a clear and detailed job descriptionDistributing task fairlyNever criticize team members publiclyAlways be fair and just with your teamBeing a role model

KEY COMPONENTS IN RESOLVING CONFLICT

GREAT LISTENING SKILLS

FLEXIBILITY

WILLINGNESS TO CHANGE

AGREE TO DISAGREE

1. LISTENING SKILLS

Maintain eye contactDo not interrupt - let them finishGood posture - maintain a non-threatening

positionGentally rehearse situations you might

become emotional in

2. FLEXIBILITY

Be able to adjust to any situationDo not try to handle the situation alone - use

your partner(s)Understand you are not going to please

everyone - agree to disagree - this is a two way street, but the official has final say

3. WILLINGNESS TO CHANGE

Get the call right - use your partner(s)If change is necessary - make the changeSupport your partner(s) - you are a teamUnderstand the psychology of coaches and

what motivates them - communicate with them - know your coach

4. DEFUSING THE SITUATION

INFORMAL CONFLICTS:Normal contest situations will not be stoppedUse visual acknowledgment with coach or

participantsDirect eye contact or use caution sign.Use short verbal explanation“I hear you, I will watch for that”“I saw it differently than that”Most of all - know your audience

FORMAL CONFLICT

Contest will temporarily be stoppedHelp your partner with positve information -

let partner make the callDefuse the situation - do not abuse it - get

everyone calmed down if possibleGood eye contactProper postureClose the situation as rapidly as possible

NECESSARY CHANGE

If the official is in error, make the necessary change

Explain to the opposing coach and captain(s) the situation and the change

Get the contest started as quickly as possible

There are advantages to conflict.

While the term conflict generally is associated with negative encounters, conflict itself is neither inherently good nor inherently bad. In fact, engaging in conflict can have positive effects on relationships and organizations. Consider these benefits: Managing conflict is quicker and more efficient than letting conflicts fester. Conflict fosters an awareness that problems exist. Discussing conflicting views can lead to better solutions. Conflict requires creativity to find the best outcomes. Conflict raises awareness of what is important to individuals. Managing conflicts appropriately helps build self-esteem. Managing conflicts well is a sign of maturity. Conflicts are challenging. Conflicts are exciting. Conflicts encourage people to grow. Conflicts create opportunity.

There are disadvantages to conflict.

Conflict can injure feelings.Conflict can delay the work of process,Conflict result in factions developing

ConclusionConflict is unavoidable

Interaction among workersDependence of workers on one anotherComplexity of organizational relationshipConflict is a healthy sign not a negative processIt reflects dynamics