Conflict Resolution: Discovering Your Style and Constructively Addressing Differences

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Conflict Resolution Discovering Your Style and
Constructively Addressing Differences

• Foreign Language Teaching Assistant (FLTA)
  Workshop
• Adriana Medina, Ph.D.
• San Diego, CA
• February 3, 2007

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Find Your Place in the Continuum

• I love conflict, I cant get enough of it!
• I avoid conflict at all costs. Theres nothing
  worse.

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When I think of conflict I think of
Conflict
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Reflection

• How do the members of your group see conflict?
• Were the opinions similar, different, mixed?
• Was there anything surprising about your
  colleagues ways of looking at conflict?

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When Do We Find Conflict?

• When differences in interests, needs, and values
  among people impede or hinder the resolution of a
  problem.
• When feelings are hurt.

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Conflict

• Conflict may result from power struggles at all
  levels (from individuals to nations).
• We may get into conflict when we feel that our
  identity is threatened.

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Individual Conflict Style

• The patterned behavior we exhibit in conflict
  situations around how we express disagreements
  and how we express emotion toward the other
  party.
• (Hammer)

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Intercultural Conflict Style

• A culture group manner for dealing with
  disagreements and communicating emotion.
• (Hammer)

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Pay Attention To Your

• Communication style
• Emotions display or lack of it
• Values

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Plus

• How much are you willing to give/negotiate?
• How flexible are you willing to be?

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Intercultural Conflict Style Model (Hammer)
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What Are Your Priorities?
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US Values (Cultural Tendencies)

• Speaking Up Capitalism
• Control Law Order
• Speed Equality

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More US Values (Cultural Tendencies)

• Being Oneself Self-Reliance
• Self-Interest Individual Rights
• Directness Competition
• Freedom Independence
• Individual Achievement Privacy
• Hard Work Fairness

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Case Study

• Read the case study
• Find the apparent sources of misunderstanding
• What are some things that can be done to bridge
  the differences?

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Ask Yourself (Startup List)

• Why does this bother me? Is it the way s/he is
  saying it, the situation, or what s/he is saying?
• What is important to me in this situation?
• What values of mine are being challenged?
• What behaviors are being violated?
• What expectations have been unfulfilled?
• Can I see things from his/her perspective?

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Observe, Listen, Understand

• What is important to the other person?
• What does this person value?
• What are his/her expectations about behavior?
• Is my behavior challenging him/her?
• Are we really in disagreement?
• Can I show or explain to him/her my perspective
  in a way that s/he will listen? What would that
  entail?

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Resources

• The following site can give you a lot of insight!
  Make sure to visit it
• Whats Up with Culture?
• http//www.pacific.edu/sis/culture/

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• Thank you
• and
• good luck to you!