Nature and Origin of Conflict by Nauman Khan

1. Nature and Origin of
Conflict
ASSIGNED BY: MR. RAMZAN AZHAR
PRESENTED BY: NAUMAN KHAN (MS-II)

2. Conflict:
 Conflict can be defined in many ways and can be considered as:
an expression of hostility,
negative attitudes,
aggression,
rivalry and
misunderstanding.
 “A situation in which someone believes that his or her own needs have
been denied is conflict”.

3. Conflict:
 Conflict is a psychological state of mind when people are in a dilemma
whether to do or not to do a thing, is a state of conflict.
 Conflict occurs when individuals are not able to choose among the
available alternative courses of action.
 According to J.W. Thomas;
“It is a process that begins when one party perceives that another party
has negatively affected or is about to negatively affect something that the first
party cares about”.

4. Conflict:
 According to:
Joe Kelly, “Conflict is opposition or dispute between persons, groups or
ideas”.
 Follett says, “Conflict is the appearance of difference, difference of
opinions, of interests”.
 Conflict can be treated broadly as a philosophical category denoting the
clash of power against power in the striving of all things to become
manifest.

5. Nature and Origin of Conflict:
 The understanding, one has, of a conflict is strongly influenced by the way
one thinks about the nature of conflict.
 Presentation of conflict as:
 a natural phenomenon,
 as an alien or abnormal happening in social life,
 as a necessary condition for the development and growth of individuals
and societies.
 The individuals are faced with the whole range of conflict types, from
intrapersonal to international situations; the deal with conflict in
individual’s mind, at home, in educational institution and at work; the deal
with it as it takes place in the social environment around them.

6. Nature and Origin of Conflict:
 Working together is not always easy, it is because of Conflict.
 By its very nature, conflict is a process of polarization.
 When two people or parties are in conflict, they characteristically move to
opposite sides of an issue.
 They fortify their position by overstating their case, creating further
distance between themselves.
 As the conflict escalates, they become more resolute in defending their
position and destroying that of their opponent’s.

7. Nature and Origin of Conflict:
 Conflict is a process of simplification.
 We ignore the reasons, justifications, viewpoints and concerns of the other
side.
 We dismiss the texture and meaning of their statements, and we are blind
to the shortcomings of our own.
 They are wrong and we are right.

8. Nature and Origin of Conflict:
 Conflict is generally considered as a tendency to perform two or more
incompatible responses at the same time, resulting in emotional, mental
and physical levels.
 A classic understanding of conflict is a dynamic phenomenon; one actor is
reacting to what another actor is doing, which leads to further action.

9. Nature and Origin of Conflict:
 Conflicts may arise then the parties are like players, competing for the
same prize such as power, position, authority, territory or materials or
disagreements about the rule of the game.
 Ho-won Jeong is an international peace researcher who pointed out that
relative deprivation, dissatisfaction of basic needs, failure of organizational
functions, asymmetric power relations and dominant social structures are
the important components in the origin of conflict.

10. Nature and Origin of Conflict:
 Basic requirements of human beings are both physical and psychological
needs. Food, shelter and other basic material necessities are needed for
physical survival. Love, affection, security and self-esteem satisfy
psychological needs. Lack of this physical and psychological conditions of
human beings are responsible for the stage of conflicts.

11. Theoretical Approaches to Conflict:
 There have been different theoretical approaches to understanding conflict.
 Psychologists have focused on intrapersonal conflicts.
 Social psychologists have concentrated on inter-personal and inter-group conflicts.
 Economists have focused on economic competitions, labor negotiations and trade
disputes.
 Political scientists have specialized in political and international issues.

12. Conflict is different from Competition:
 Competition takes place when individuals or groups have incompatible
goals but do not interfere with each other as they try to attain their
respective goals. (Conflict is opposite to it).

13. Sources of Conflict:
 Intra-personal, Interpersonal and Group Conflict.
 Organizational Change.
 Different sets of values.
 Contrasting perceptions.
 Interdepartmental wrangles, Interfamily wrangles, Interparty wrangles,
interpersonal wrangles.
 Personality clashes.
 Threats to status.
 Lack of trust.
 Job related issues.
 Other Agendas.

14. Outcomes or Effects of Conflicts :
Conflict can be both Positive and Negative.
 Positive:
 Acts as motivating factor to do better work and harder work.
 Introducing variety.
 Increased participation and creativity.
 Create understanding.
 It can be positive when it encourages creativity, new looks at old, the clarification of
points of view, and the development of human capabilities to handle interpersonal
differences.

15. Outcomes or Effects of Conflicts :
Conflict can be both Positive and Negative.
 Negative:
 Drop in Productivity. (Focus on conflict, not on productivity).
 Lack of direction.
 Lack of new ideas.
 Affects quality and quantity of work.
 It can be negative when it creates resistance to change, establishes turmoil, builds a
feeling of defeat or widens the chasm of misunderstanding.

16. Organizational Conflicts :
 Definition:
Organizational Conflict or otherwise known as workplace conflict, is described as
the state of disagreement or misunderstanding, resulting from the actual or perceived
dissent of needs, beliefs, resources and relationship between the members of the
organization.
At the workplace, whenever, two or more persons interact, conflict occurs when
opinions with respect to any task or decision are in contradiction.

17. Organizational Conflicts :
 Factors Influencing Organizational Conflict:
 Unclear Responsibilities.
 Interpersonal Issues.
 Scarcity of Resources.
 Conflict of Interest.

18. Organizational Conflicts :
 Types of Organizational Conflict
 Relationship Conflict: The conflict arising out of interpersonal tension among
employees, which is concerned with the relationship intrinsically, not the project at
hand.
 Task Conflict: When there is a discord, among members regarding nature of work to
be performed is task conflict
 Process Conflict: Clashes among the team members due to the difference in
opinions, on how work should be completed, is called process conflict.

19. Organizational Conflicts :
 Causes of Organizational Conflict
 Managerial Expectations: Every employee is expected to meet the targets, imposed
by his/her superior and when these expectations are misunderstood or not fulfilled
within the stipulated time, conflicts arises.
 Communication Disruption: One of the major cause of conflict at the workplace is
disruption in the communication, i.e. if one employee requires certain information
from another, who does not respond properly, conflict sparks in the organization.

20. Organizational Conflicts :
 Causes of Organizational Conflict
 Misunderstanding: Misunderstanding of information, can also alleviate dispute in
organization, in the sense that if one person misinterpret some information, it can
lead to series of conflicts.
 Lack of accountability: If in a project, responsibilities are not clear and some mistake
has arisen, of which no member of the team wants to take responsibility can also
become a cause of conflict in the organization.

21. Thank You!