Conflict Management.pptx

Introduction.
• Conflict management is an umbrella term for
the way we identify and handle conflicts
fairly and efficiently.
• The goal is to minimize the potential
negative impacts that can arise from
disagreements and increase the odds of a
positive outcome.
• At home, work or church or institution,
disagreements can be unpleasant, and not
every dispute calls for the same response.
• Learn to choose the right conflict
management style, and you'll be better able
to respond constructively whenever disputes
arise.

What is conflict management?
• Conflict management refers to the way
that you handle disagreements. On any
given day, you may have to deal with a
dispute between you and another
individual, your family members, or
fellow church member.
• Although there are many reasons people
disagree, many conflicts revolve around:
• Personal values (real or perceived)
• Perceptions
• Conflicting goals
• Power dynamics
• Communication style

Definition of conflict
• Conflict is a social phenomenon that
happens in families, corporate
organizations, churches, communities,
learning institutions.
• Conflict is a situation in which two or
more human beings desire goals which
they perceive as being obtainable by
one or the other but not both.
• Conflict is a struggle over values and
claims to scarce status, power and
resources in which the aims of the
opponents are to neutralize, injure, or
eliminate the rivals.

Nature and
characteristic of
conflict.
• In looking at the nature and
characteristics, there are a couple of
attributes that are worth highlighting/
First. Conflict is described by some as
composed of (3) Ns briefly described
below:
• That conflict is Normal. This entail that
conflict is not a strange phenomenon in a
World of human beings, for even wild
animals do have conflicts. Put differently,
given people’s diversities in terms of
backgrounds, perspectives, attitudes etc.,
conflict is a normal occurrence.

Cont’
• That conflict is Natural. For as long we
continue to co-exist as a people conflict
will always be an inevitable part of our
lives. As old adages in Africa and Zambia is
no exception, posits, two trees close
together cannot avoid contact through its
branches.
• That conflict is Neutral. In itself, conflict is
neither bad nor good. It is contended that
conflict can be constructive if handled well
and destructive if handled poorly.
Therefore, conflict as an outgrowth of our
diversity should not be avoided, instead its
violent conflict that requires prevention.

Types of Conflict.
• No conflict or neutral- any peaceful
individual or community is likely to face
conflict, although such people and
communities are good at resolving
conflicts before they even occur. This
can be properly understood through
Chaos and System theories (butterfly
effect).
• The surface conflict-this has shallow or
roots. It may be due to
misunderstanding of goals which can be
addressed by improved communication
and the conscious effort of opposing
groups to understand each other’s
needs and opinions.

Cont’
• Latent (hidden) conflict- this is conflict
below the surface; it might need to be
brought out into the open before it can
be effectively addressed.
• Open (overt) conflict- this is conflict
which is very visible and has deep roots,
sometimes it could have been there for
several generations. Both the causes
and the needs must be addressed.
• Surface and latent conflicts can easily or
quickly turn into open ones. Open
conflicts cause a lot of physical harm or
even death, social, psychological and
environmental damage. It affects people
who are not directly involved in the
conflicts and also those involved.

Forms of conflict
• Further, it is important to note that conflict has a form and
nature which deserves highlighting. Conflict is composed of
three key aspects namely people, process and problem
popularly known as the 3Ps.
• People: refers to the relational and psychological elements of the
conflict. This includes people’s feelings, emotions, individual and
group perceptions of problem. Communication also plays a role
on how conflict can be exuberated or reduced.
• Process: refers to the way decisions get made and how people
feel about it. The process of decision making in a conflict is often
a key cause because individuals may resent the decisions that are
made and they may feel like they were treated unfairly, both of
which contribute to feelings of powerlessness. People who feel
excluded or sense they cannot influence decisions affecting their
lives will rarely cooperate with decision makers or support these
decisions. They may not overtly reject the decision, but their
behavior will disrupt the relationship in subtle and covert ways.

Cont’
• Problem: refers to the specific issues involved in
the conflict and the differences people have
between them. This may involve different values,
opposing views about how to make a decision,
incompatible needs or interests, and concrete
differences regarding use, distribution, or access to
scarce resources (land, money, and time). These
are often referred to as the root causes of a
conflict.

Concept of
Conflict.
• Conflict refers to more than just overt
behaviors.
• The three-dimensional conception of
conflict emphasizes the need to
consider the situation in which parties
(individuals, groups, organizations or
nations) come to possess incompatible
goals, their structure of interaction and
the nature of their goals. We gave to
consider emotional (distrust) and
cognitive (stereotyping) orientations
that accompany a conflict situation as
well as the range of action undertaken
by any party in a situation of conflict.
• The perception of threat, or actual
occurrence of conflict, is necessary for
the initiation of conflict prevention or
management measures, and hence it
is essential to address the concept of
conflict before exploring how to
prevent and manage such occurrences.

Cont’
• The perception of threat, or actual occurrence of conflict, is necessary
for the initiation of conflict prevention or management measures, and
hence it is essential to address the concept of conflict before exploring
how to prevent and manage such occurrences.
• As per the traditional definition of conflict, it is the result of opposing
interests involving scarce resources, goal divergence and frustration.
Conflict is not defined simply in terms of violence (behavior) or
hostility (attitudes), but also includes incompatibility or differences in
issue position. Such a definition is designed to include conflicts outside
the traditional military sphere and is based on behavioral dimensions.
• When discussing the concept of conflict, the perception should be
included as a central concept since the conflicts and the opponent’s
intentions often are defined according to subjective perceptions.

CONFLICT STAGES
• There is general agreement on four basic stages of conflict.
These stages are not mutually exclusive and therefore, an
individual/organization/nation may be involved in more than
one at a time.
• Intrapersonal: conflict within the
individual/organization/nation (for example, who cannot make
decisions).
• Interpersonal: conflict among two or more
individuals/organizations/nations (for example, an argument
between the two parties).
• Intragroup: conflict within the members of same group.
• Intergroup: conflict between two or more groups (for
example, between two different camps of groups or nations).

THE LIFE CYCLE
OF A CONFLICT.
• A conflict is not a static situation, but a
dynamic one – the intensity level changes
over a conflicts’ life cycle. An
understanding of the conflict cycle is
essential for an understanding of how,
where and when to apply different
strategies and measures of conflict
prevention and management.
• In principle, conflict prevention, conflict
management and conflict resolution are
regarded as applicable in different phases
of a conflict.

Understanding
the Conflict
Cycle.
• Robinson (1978) identified the now widely
recognized Conflict Cycle – the stages that
most community conflicts go through.
• While it is worth noting that real life is not as
discrete or as linear as the graph below
might suggest, and that different
stakeholders may reach each point at
different times, the value of this cycle lies in
using it as a diagnostic tool for determining
what’s going on and how you might best
intervene.

Tension
development.
• First, two parties disagree on an issue.
• Parties begin taking sides.
• Tension development may appear
immediately or over time.
• Groups are formed.
• Intervention opportunity: gathering and
providing objective information, listening to
all sides, reframing the issue or problem.

Role dilemma
• People gather to hear.
• People involved start asking questions:
what is happening, who is right, what
should be done?
• Based on this information they may try to
take sides. This may happen at the same
time as tension development.
• Intervention opportunity: gathering and
providing objective information, listening
to all sides, reframing the challenge,
leading a discussion to help all sides see
the complexity, values, and perceptions
around the issue.
• Building trust, emphasizing recognition of
common ground, identify appropriate
jurisdiction issues.

Injustice
collecting
• Regrouping.
• Each side seeks to gather support. Each
itemizes the problem, justifies their position,
and thinks of either revenge or strategies to
'win'.
• Intervention opportunity: similar to above,
gathering and providing objective information,
listening to all sides, reframing the challenge,
leading a discussion to help all sides see the
complexity, values, and perceptions around
the issue, brainstorming causes, alternatives
and consequences.
• This stage of the conflict cycle may be the last
chance to build trust and establish sense of
common ground with respect to either the
issue, a solution, or desired outcome.

Confrontation.
• Face to face
• The parties meet head-on. If each party
holds fast to its side the showdown may
cause permanent barriers.
• Intervention opportunity: effective
facilitation, gathering and providing
objective information, listening to all
sides, reframing the challenge,
highlighting all sides and the complexity,
values, and perceptions around the
issue.
• Brainstorm causes, alternatives,
consequences, seek win-wins, outline
how decisions will be made and steps
forward.

Adjustments
Meeting at the middle.
Confrontation may be lessened or avoided by one or
both parties making adjustments.
Intervention opportunity: emphasizing the win-win
while applauding the insights and perspectives of
everyone even those who may not be completely
satisfied.
Providing follow-up information. Consider
highlighting lessons learned, etc.

Approaches to Conflict
Management
• Accommodating
An accommodating mode of conflict management tends to be
high in cooperation but low in assertiveness. When you use this
style, you resolve the disagreement by sacrificing your own
needs and desires for those of the other party.
This management style might benefit your work when conflicts
are trivial and you need to move on quickly. At home, this style
works when your relationship with your roommate, partner, or
child is more important than being right. Although
accommodation might be optimal for some conflicts, others
require a more assertive style.

Cont’
• Avoiding
When avoiding, you try to dodge or bypass a conflict. This style
of managing conflicts is low in assertiveness and
cooperativeness. Avoidance is unproductive for handling most
disputes because it may leave the other party feeling like you
don't care. Also, if left unresolved, some conflicts become much
more troublesome.
However, an avoiding management style works in situations
where:
You need time to think through a disagreement.
• You have more pressing problems to deal with first.
• The risks of confronting a problem outweigh the benefits.

Cont’
• Collaborating
A collaborating conflict management
style demands a high level of
cooperation from all parties involved.
Individuals in a dispute come
together to find a respectful
resolution that benefits everyone.
Collaborating works best if you have
plenty of time and are on the same
power level as the other parties
involved. If not, you may be better
off choosing another style.

Cont’
• Competing
When you use a competitive conflict
management style (sometimes called
'forcing'), you put your own needs and
desires over those of others. This style
is high in assertiveness and low in
cooperation. In other words, it's the
opposite of accommodating. While
you might think this style would never
be acceptable, it's sometimes needed
when you are in a higher position of
power than other parties and need to
resolve a dispute quickly.

Cont’
• Compromising
Compromising demands moderate
assertiveness and cooperation from all
parties involved. With this type of
resolution, everyone gets something
they want or need. This style of
managing conflict works well when
time is limited. Because of time
constraints, compromising isn't always
as creative as collaborating, and some
parties may come away less satisfied
than others.

Strategies for Conflict
Management
• Conflicts is always present when you spend time with
other people, whether at work, church or home.
However, when conflicts aren’t resolved, they can
lead to various negative consequences. These include:
• Hurt feelings
• Resentment and frustration
• Loneliness and depression
• Passive aggression and communication issues
• Increased stress and stress-related health problems
• Low morale
• Reduced productivity
• Staff turnover

Cont’
• Conflict is a part of life. Knowing a few
strategies for managing conflict can help keep
your home, church or workplace healthy. Here
are a few tips to keep in mind when conflict
arises:
• Acknowledge the problem.
If someone comes to you with a dispute that
seems trivial to you, remember it may not be
trivial to them. Actively listen to help the other
person feel heard, then decide what to do about
the situation.

Cont’
• Gather the necessary information.
You can't resolve a conflict unless you've
investigated all sides of the problem. Take
the time you need to understand all the
necessary information. This way, you'll
choose the best conflict management style
and find an optimal resolution.
• Set guidelines.
Whether discussing a conflict with a
spouse or intervening for two paties,
setting a few guidelines before you begin
is essential. Participants should agree to
speak calmly, listen, and try to understand
the other person's point of view. Agree up
front that if the guidelines aren't followed,
the discussion will end and resume at a
later time.

Cont’
• Keep emotion out of the
discussion.
An angry outburst may end a conflict,
but it's only temporary. Talk things
out calmly to avoid having the
dispute pop up again.
• Be decisive.
Once you've talked through a dispute
and evaluated the best approach,
take action on the solution you've
identified. Letting others in on what
you decide lets them know that you
care and are moving forward.

Causes of Social Conflict.
1.Human nature – this is of the view that mankind is evil by
nature.
• Conflict is a fact of life – God made each one of us in this
own image but also made us unique.
• This means some of our view or opinions will differ from
others.
• Conflict often occur because of lack of respect for other’s
view or needs.
• Conflict are part of human life, like the bemba say “imiti
yipalamene tayibula kukwasana” meaning tree branches
close to each other cannot avoid rubbing against each other.
• Therefore, conflict are due to human interactions with
fellow humans, God the creator and the environment.
• Personality clashes – there are inter – personal and intra –
personal conflict. Under this there are
• a. Sin – the primary source of conflict (Isaiah 57:21) “good
person out of the good treasure of his heart produces good
and the evil person out of this treasure produce evil, for the
abundance of the heart the mouth speaks.
• Most of the problems human faces are tongue problems
and mostly related to communication.

Cont’
• b. conflict instigators – these are people who always
see wrong in other people or situations. People with
a stronghold in their personality. (2 Cor 10:4).
2. Frustration aggression – a source of conflict when
human beings are prevented from fulfilling their needs.
When a person is blocked in its pursuit of a goal or a
desire. Aggression is the difference between what
people FEEL they WANT or they deserve to what they
actually get.
3. Marital conflicts – happenings in marriages.
4. Ownership and control of resources – especially
land and other resources.
5. Ethics based conflict – tribal fights, nepotism,
tribalism and ethnic identity.
6. Political struggle – inter –party, intra- party disputes
can be source of conflicts. In Zambia cadres in church
and politics can course conflict.

Cont’
7. Power and positions – struggle for power, in churches, institutions,
politices and nations. In pursuit of power people are able to kill, malign
others, character assassination in order to take up power.
8. Poverty – is both a cause and effect of most conflicts. Poverty is lack of
basic necessities which is the state of being poor.
9. Conflict about information – not having same information.
10. Conflict over resources – disputes about material resources such as land,
money.
11. Conflict over relationship – in families over roles, responsibilities and
world view.
12. Conflict over interest or needs – such as identity, respect, participation,
ability to influence others and success.

Cont’
• 11. Conflict about structure – structures usually
determine who has access to power or
resources, and has authority.
• 12. Conflict involving values – values and life
experiences, faith perspectives form beliefs,
challenge to a person’s value is seen as a threat
to one’s identity. Conflict involving values are
usually difficult to resolve.
• Biblical understanding of Conflict.
• Managing or peacemaking is a very practical
subject to teach and to practice.

Cont’
• We face conflicts or disagreements in our lives
and ministry on regular basis.
• Peacemakers are called to fix problems.
• Two things to understand.
• Role of a peacemaker is rooted in what the Bible
says about God. Mt 5:9
• God has called us to reflect His character as
peacemaker in everything we do. 1Cor 10:31,
11:1.

Four Biblical cause of
conflicts.
• Dispute arise because of
misunderstandings resulting from
poor communication. (Jos 22:10-34)
• Differences in values, goals, gifts,
calling, priorities, expectations,
interests or opinions can lead to
conflicts. (Acts 15:39, 1Cor, 12:12 -
31)
• Competition over limited resources,
such as time and money. (Gen 13:1-
12)

Cont’
• Many conflicts are caused by sinful attitudes and habits
that leads to sinful words and actions. (James 4:1-2).
• Conflict is not necessarily bad, the Bible teaches that
some differences are neutral and beneficial. Since God
created us unique individuals human beings.
• Each with different opinions, convictions, desires,
perspectives, and priorities.
• Many of these are not inherently right or wrong , they
are simply the result of God – given diversity and
personal preferences. (1Cor12:12 -31)
• Although we seek unity in our relationship, we should
not demand uniformity. (Ephesians 4: 1-13)

Cont’
• Rejoice in the diversity of God’s creation and
learn to accept and work with people who
simply see things differently than we do.
(Rom 15:7, 14:1-13).
• Many disagreement are a result of sinful
attitude and behaviours (James 4:1-2)
• Biblical understanding of Peace.
• God ‘s purpose for peace are evident in how
the state is characterized by peace. (Isaiah
2:4).
• In the day of the Lord, the Lord will settle our
disputes.
• With the coming of the messiah, Isaiah says “
of the increase of his government and peace
there will be no end. (Isaiah 9:7)

Cont’
• Peace is described as,
• Relationship between men (Matt 10:34, Rom14:19)
• Between nations. (Lk 14:32, Acts 16:11).
• Friendliness. (Acts 15:33, I Cor 16:11)
• Order in the state, (Acts 24:2, in the Church, 1
Corb14:33)
• Relationship between God and man accomplished
through the gospel. (Acts 10.36, Eph 2:7
• Opportunities in conflicts.
• Conflict always provide an opportunity to glorify God,
that is to bring praise , glory and honor to him by
showing who he is, what he is like, and what he is
doing. (1Cor 10:31 – 11:1)

Cont’
• Firstly, trust God – instead of relying on your own ideas and abilities
as you respond to people who opposes you. Ask god to give you
peace to depend on him and follow his ways, even if there are
completely opposite to what you feel like doing. (Pro 3;5-7)
• Secondly, obey God – one of the most powerful ways to glorify God is
do what he commands. (Matt 5:16, Jn 17:4, Phil 1:9-10.
• Thirdly, imitate God – like the believers in Ephesus struggled with
conflict and Paul gave advice to “imitate God” (Eph 5:1-2)
• Fourthly, acknowledge God – as God gives you the peace to respond
to conflict acknowledge.

Cont’
• Understanding One’s behavior in Conflict.
• In every conflict, examine your part or role.
What is your attitude which has caused you to
be offended too early, check yourself first. (Matt
7:5)
• See if there is no contribution due to your own
sinful behavior. There are two issues in any
conflict, material and personal.
• 1. Material issues brings out property, money,
rights and responsibilities which can be resolved
through cooperative negotiation.
• 2. Personal issues involves our feelings and
attitudes. This is about how we treat each other.
• A. Overlooking minor offences.

Cont’
• Bible provides solutions on how to overlook and
avoid some conflicts.
• Wisdom (Pro 19;11)
• Drop the matter. (Pro 17:14, 26:17)
• Love (1 Pet 4:8, Prov 10:12, 26:17)
• Be patient (Eph 4:2)
• Forgive (Col 3:13, Eph 4:13)
• B. check your attitude and change it.
• Check your attitude in right with God’s word, Paul
gives us some guidance in Eph 4:2-9)
• Rejoice in the Lord always.
• Let your gentleness be evident to all (Gal 6:1-2)

Cont’
• Replace anxiety with prayers.
• See things as they are, helps in
understanding others.
• Practice what you have learnt from God’s
word.
• Count the cost.
• Conflict are expensive – time, money,
spiritual and emotional exhausting.
• Damages relationships and reputations.
• Brings about resentment and bitterness
• Destroys your relationship with God.
• Always settle matters quickly.

Cont’
• C. Biblical Negotiation.
• Aims to use God’s standards (word of
God) in negotiation.
• It address issues of the heart.
• Confronts selfish ambitions and
other impure motives.
• Urges parties to look into the interest
of others.
• Seeks God interests, truth, justice,
and mercy.
• Basic steps for negotiations
• Prepare.

Cont’
• Pray for direction
• Get all the facts needed.
• Identify the issue.
• Identify the desires and motives.
• Seek Godly counsel.
• Develop options.
• Affirm Relationship
• Build relationship.
• We are brothers and sisters in Christ.

Cont’
• Understanding Interests
• To understand the interest of
others.
• Understanding issues, positions,
interests.
• Separate sinful interests and Godly
interest.
• Search for creative solutions
• Brainstorming.
• Think outside the box.
• Seek God’s wisdom, insight and
creativity
• Allow others to suggest first.
• Get everyone involved.

Cont’
• Evaluate options objectively
and reasonably.
• Be objective – based on facts
and unbiased
• Be reasonable – sound
judgement is very important.
• Be quick to listen, slow to
speak and slow to become
angry (James 1:19)

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