There are several typical sources of workplace conflict, including interpersonal, organizational, and external factors. Interpersonal conflicts arise from incompatible communication styles, goals, or needs between individuals. Organizational conflicts stem from inequalities in reporting structures or daily pressures from the external environment. Understanding the underlying source of a conflict is the first step to properly resolving issues in the workplace.

1. The first step in uncovering workplace conflict is to
consider the typical sources of conflict. There are a
variety of sources of workplace conflict including
interpersonal, organizational, external factors.
ECONOMIC
CONFLICT
Competition in attaining
monetary or human
resources.
Incompatibility in core
beliefs such as religion,
ethics, or politics.
VALUES CONFLICT
Competition in the level of
influence each party wishes
to attain or maintain in the
relationship or decision
making process.
POWER CONFLICT
Incompatibility in needs,
goals, or approaches to
communication or work
styles.
INTERPERSONAL
CONFLICT
External pressures such as
recession that impact the
daily work structure.
ENVIRONMENTAL
CONFLICT
ORGANIZATIONAL
CONFLICT
Inequalities in the
organizational structure and
how employees report to
each other.
Knowing the source of workplace conflict is
a good first step toward resolving it. Taking
time to understand why a conflict is
occurring will allow you to collect the right
tools to resolve it properly.
SOURCES OF
CONFLICT
In The Workplace
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