The Use of Conflict Management Styles Across Different Cultures - Coursework Example

THE USE OF CONFLICT MANAGEMENT STYLES ACROSS DIFFERENT CULTURES of Table of Contents Table of Contents 2 Introduction: 3 Culture, identity and conflicts: 3 Connection between culture and conflicts: 4 Models of conflict management: 5 Conclusion: 8 References: 9 Introduction: The business process is evolving continuously with the increasing focus on developing market competitive advantage. Business houses are trying to align the core value of the firms with the functional aspects of the firm (Blair, 2001). Streamlining the internal activities of the organization can bring forth the differences in the work process and give rise to disputes and conflicts among the managers and the workforce of the firm. This study will focus on the influence of organizational cultures in the process of conflict management within the organization. The study will also intend to evaluate the process of selection of the conflict management styles in the organizations and the factors influencing them. Culture, identity and conflicts: The cultural identities of the organizations have become more diversified in the contemporary scenario as the internal workforce is more widespread and open (Cochran & Harpending, 2009). According to Devine et al. (2002), culture defines the identity of an individual, group or an institution and is one of strongest psychological attachments that can give rise to conflicts if tempered with. Blair (2001) opined that often it is observed that mergers and strategic alliances fail in the real world businesses because of their cultural differences. For instance, the merger between Ford and Chrysler in the year 1998 failed because of the inability of their workforce of the organizations to adapt to the changes in the work structure. In order to assess the influence of culture on the conflict management process, it is essential to first understand the factors involved in culture. Devine et al. (2002) reflected that although culture is not always the cause of the conflict but it can influence the conflict resolving process. In the words of Blair (2001), culture of a firm reflects the core values, passion and its aim. Geary (2005) added that the stakeholders of a firm contribute towards the development of its culture. This again creates complicacies and conflicts among the management and the shareholders of a company. Bentley et al. (2007) argued that organizational culture is influenced by the aims and objectives which in turn dominate the work process of the firm. Devine et al. (2002) focused on the influence of cultures on the business process and stated that when the basic needs of an individual, group or organization are satisfied, conflicts do not rise among diverse cultures. However, Chiappe & MacDonald (2005) stated that cultural diversity also increases the chances of conflict among the people as it reflects the differences in the thought process, working style and followership of a workforce. This justifies the use of different strategies and models on the basis of the cultures for managing internal conflicts in organizations. Connection between culture and conflicts: As stated above, the influence of culture on conflicts cannot be ignored, however, organizations can adapt to suitable frameworks based on the nature and scope of conflict. Chiappe & MacDonald (2005) stated the consumer related problems in the organizational sphere is often developed on the basis of effective conflict resolving models. For instance, US fashion retailer Nordstrom is renowned for their consumer conflict management process and they use the accommodating model (nordstrom.com, 2014). According to Blair (2001), in order to develop the conflict management model of a firm, the organizational aim contributes in the development of organizational culture and the conflict management models. Geary (2005) emphasized that cultural identity often reflects the needs and wants of the people and when these needs remain unfulfilled conflicts tend to occur. On the other hand, in case of conflict management, the approach is developed according to the cultural beliefs of the people (Chiappe & MacDonald, 2005). For instance, Nordstrom believes that providing service to the customers will develop loyalty and they adopt co-operative dimension of conflict management model. Most of the times, confect resolving or management techniques are adopted by the companies based on their cultural background. This helps them to develop a transparent scenario of the needs and objectives of the firm and hence, the conflict management approach is built accordingly. The argument provided by Devine et al. (2002), states that in the contemporary scenario, organizational beliefs rely upon the culture of their shareholders rather than the organizational needs which can hamper the organizational growth. Cultural differences also create barriers for reaching a negotiable point within the business prospect. Chiappe & MacDonald (2005) stated that conflicts relate to the culture either during the initiation or the negotiation. Bentley et al. (2007) added that the decisions taken by an individual are based on the evaluation of the scenario and the past experiences which is again related to their cultural upbringing. Models of conflict management: The most commonly followed framework for conflict management was developed by Kenneth Thomas and Ralph Killman. The Thomas-Killman model of conflict management is based on two dimensions that define the approach of the parties (Bentley et al. 2007). Figure 1: Assertive and Co-operative dimensions of conflict management (Source: Manolescu & Deaconu, 2008, p - 33) The model has categorized the conflict management approach in four segments namely, competing, collaborating, avoiding and accommodating. Each of these approaches is used based on the ultimate aim of the parties to the conflict. Manolescu & Deaconu, (2008) stated that accommodating approach ensures that the conflict can be easily managed by letting the opponent party have their way and is co-operative in nature. However, Cochran & Harpending (2009) opined that in the real life scenario internal conflicts among managers and employees are more critical. For instance, organizations are not able to compromise on their culture and on the other hand submitting to the consumer or employee demands may create future problems in human resource management. Similarly, if avoidance approaches for conflict management also focuses on negotiation of the conflicts by ignoring the matter of conflict. Devine et al. (2002) stated that the influence of culture in avoiding approach of conflict management is less in comparison to the other approaches of conflict management. As the motive of conflict resolution is to avoid any confrontation, the cultural influence does not affect the conflict management process. Bentley et al. (2007) criticized that avoiding confrontation may create gaps in the interpretation of culture and the perceptions among the parties which can result in future barriers. Both avoiding and accommodating conflict management process falls under the co-operative dimensions. The assertive dimension of conflict management on the other hand, is more directed towards developing an aggressive attitude towards handling the situation. The competing approach is based on contending the dispute and trying to drive a winning outcome. Manolescu & Deaconu, (2008) stated that, although most of the people want to derive a peaceful solution out of every dispute but when the cultural identities are tempered with the competing approach is automatically fitted into the scenario. Cochran & Harpending (2009) opined that competing approach is the most difficult process of conflict management in terms of deriving a result. However, the nature of competing if indebted in the cultural knowledge of an organization or individual then it will push the concerned party to the limits for achieving a positive outcome. In a real life scenario of conflict management, competing approach provides the most efficient outcome as it is based on legal regulations and frameworks that are not influenced by the culture and emotions of the parties. Devine et al. (2002) studied that the people applying competing approach for managing disputes are often guided by the intuitions rather than logic which can differ from the approach developed by the cultural conscience of an individual. Collaborative conflict management also falls under the assertive dimension of conflict management. In collaborative approach the parties to the dispute forms a platform for assessing a suitable outcome that can highlight mutual benefits. However, in case of collaborative approach, culture has the highest influence on outcome of the dispute. Cochran & Harpending (2009) emphasized that in a communicative platform, individuals put forth their opinions based on their experience and knowledge. The use of knowledge and experience is mainly based on the cultural upbringing of the individual and thus, they influence the decision making process. Based on the inseparable connection between culture and conflict, the conflict culture theory was developed to assess the cultural factors that clash together and create disputes and differences among opinions and actions of organizations. The conflict culture theory also focused on managing the cultural knowledge towards developing a suitable outcome for a situation. However, Manolescu & Deaconu, (2008) criticized that the conflict culture theory does not consider the difference in the scenario of conflicts which makes it inapplicable in the real world. Conclusion: The above study focused on the influence of culture in the conflict management process. The analysis reflected that culture is an inherent part of conflicts. Culture mainly defines the identity of an individual and guides the moral values and conscience. These psychological aspects are most manipulative while developing or deciding on the suitable conflict management approach. The analysis of the conflict management model reflected the application of the different approaches and their dimensions and their relation with culture. Overall, it can be concluded that although culture is an integral part of conflict, developing or managing a conflict should be based on logical conclusions rather than culture based options. References: Bentley, R. A., Lipo, C. P., Hahn, H. A., & Hahn, M. W. (2007). Regular rates of popular culture change reflect random copying. Evolution and Human Behavior, 28, 151– 158. Blair, I. V. (2001). Implicit stereotypes and prejudice. In G.B. Moskowitz (Ed.). Cognitive social psychology: The Princeton symposium on the legacy and future of social cognition. Hillsdale, NJ: Erlbaum. Chiappe, D., & MacDonald, K. B. (2005). The evolution of domain-general mechanisms in intelligence and learning. Journal of General Psychology, 132, 5–40 Cochran, G., & Harpending, H. (2009). The 10,000 year explosion: How civilization accelerated human evolution. New York: Basic Books. Devine, P. G., Plant, E. A., Amodio, D. M., Harmon-Jones, E., & Vance, S. L. (2002). The regulation of explicit and implicit race bias: The role of motivations to respond without prejudice. Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, 82, 835–848 Geary, D. (2005). The origin of mind: Evolution of brain, cognition, and general intelligence. Washington, DC: American Psychological Association Khanaki, H & Hassanzadeh, N (2010) Conflict Management Styles: The Iranian General Preference Compared to the Swedish, International Journal of Innovation, Management and Technology. 1.4. 419-426. Manolescu, A. & Deaconu, A. (2008) Considerations Regarding the Conflict Management, Academy of Economic Studies, Bucharest, 29-34. nordstrom.com (2014) About Us: Company History. Retrieved from: http://shop.nordstrom.com/c/about-us Read More