9 minute read
1. Development of conflict situations and their resolution
Purpose of the activity To acquaint participants with the development of conflict situations and their possible solutions.
Advertisement
Duration 2–4 valandos.
Location and tools Chairs, projector, writing tools.
Number of participants 10–20 participants.
Acquaintance/ team building methods All participants stand in a circle and close their eyes. One participant then chooses a certain sequence of movements. It can be a dance, an exercise or a combination of other forms of movement, most importantly to make the movements as witty as possible and harder to remember. After creating a combination of movements, the participant taps a neighbour next to him/her from the right or left and shows him/her all these movements, and he/she herself/himself also remembers them well. Then all the other participants one by one tap the neighbours next to them in the same direction and each shows the movements as they memorized them.
The circle ends at the participant who created this sequence of movements.
Practical tasks “Hot seat”
The training leader chooses the topic of the conflict on his/her own or with the help of the participants, for example, a problematic child comes to a social worker at school, a child’s conflict with parents, and so on.
In the space, four chairs in a row are placed next to each other. In front of the last chair on the right a fifth chair (“hot seat”), which is turned to the last one, is placed. On this fifth chair sits the main protagonist of the conflict: a disobedient child or other character. Four participants sit in front of the one in “hot seat” in four chairs and they will play the role of an opponent of the conflict, such as a parent, social worker, or so on.
The goal of the participant, who is sitting in the “hot seat”, is to take his position of conflict as fiercely as possible. If he/she doesn’t like something what his/her opponent says and how, he/she can clap hands, and then the opponent sitting in front of him/her moves to the end of the line (the whole line of opponents shifts by one).
The aim of the opponents, who are sitting on the four chairs, is to resolve the conflict with the participant, who is sitting in the “hot seat”. In the case, when a participant sitting in a “hot seat” claps his/her hands, it means that he/she wants to end the communication with the current opponent. The opponent then says “THANK YOU” (requirement) and asks “WHY?”. And the participant sitting in the “hot seat” explains why he/she decided to refuse further communication with him/her and clapped his/her hands. At the end of the task, both the participants, who are actively involved in the task, and the observers, reflect on the whole process and the processes that took place.
End of session reflection methods Participants are invited in a circle to share and discuss which conflicts they encounter most often and which conflict resolution strategies they choose most often and why.
THEORETICAL INFORMATION
A conflict is a clash of different opinions, positions, goals and attitudes that can occur between two or more people. At the heart of every conflict is the conflict situation, the object of the conflict, and the position in the conflict.
A conflict situation is a particular person’s attitude to an existing mismatch of attitudes, about himself/herself (his/her goals, possibilities, etc.) and about the opponent – his/her goals, individual and personal characteristics in specific circumstances, and also about how the opponent views his/her own situation. In other words, a person does not agree with another person or a group of people. An object of a conflict is an object (thing), a subject (person, human being) or phenomenon that has become the cause of disagreements. In other words, this is what the parties to the conflict disagree on. Position in the conflict – the desire expressed in words by each party of the conflict. Each of the parties to the conflict expresses their views on the situation concerning the object/subject of the conflict.
CAUSES OF CONFLICTS
Resource allocation
The parties to the conflict may not agree on ownership, control or transfer of rights in any object or rights.
Example: A group of students received 300 EUR for the implementation of the project. Some students want to spend money on a goal, others want to spend more money on their personal needs. Interaction of tasks
The parties to the conflict may not agree on the division of tasks or the division of responsibilities.
Example: When solving a group school task, a group of students cannot agree among themselves on the division of responsibilities. One task is much more difficult than the others and no one wants to take it on. Different approaches to goals Conflicting parties find themselves in a situation where, for example, there may be several tasks and each party of the conflict may pursue his/her own personal goals in that.
Example: The class received a large assignment, which was distributed to several groups in the class. One of the groups ignores the deadlines of the project and therefore fails to do its part on time. Different approaches to how to achieve a goal Conflicting parties pursue a common goal, but each party has its own personal opinion on the ways in which the goal should be pursued. Example: The group of students gets a rather complex task, some of the students just want to find the prepared information on the Internet, the others want to honestly collect the information, process it and write the paper independently. Unsatisfying communication Conflicting parties pursue a common goal but do not have the ability to express thoughts, emotions, and opinions qualitatively. Or the conflicting parties are separated by a mediator who transmits information badly from one conflicting party to another.
Differences in psychological characteristics Conflicts arise when the parties to a conflict belong to different age groups, cultures or have other differences. For example, elder people often have their own personal views on many issues and believe that their age and experience are the most valuable in making a decision.
Example no. 1: Teenagers like to wear sneakers without socks, and parents try to force them to put on socks. Example no. 2: A teacher at school wants to get the tasks done from the students in a certain way – as required by the program. Some students look at the task in a creative way and do not design it in the way the teacher requires. As a result, the teacher gets the impression that the students are lazy and look irresponsibly at the performance of the task.
Classification of conflicts Conflicts can be classified in several different ways. In this case we will list three main ways.
Classification according to participants: • interpersonal • between an individual and a group
• intergroup Classification according to conflicts’ content: • conflicts that have a reason are conflicts that are based on a real situation that needs to be resolved;
• conflicts that have no reason are conflicts that are more likely invented by the conflicting parties themselves. Such situations require more time for reflection than solution in order for the conflicting parties to understand that there is no conflict as such.
Classification according to functionality: • Constructive conflicts. Such a conflict will result in a positive experience for all parties to the conflict, and skills to solve a specific problem will also be strengthened. • Destructive conflicts. Such a conflict causes a lot of negative emotions for all parties to the conflict and can remain unresolved for a long time.
Conflictogens Conflictogens are words and actions that degrade the dignity of another person and at the same time provoke the emergence of destructive conflicts. Most conflictogens are not planned insults, and often a person can raise a conflictogen without even noticing it. Therefore, it is important for each person to monitor their behaviour and refuse behaviours that may offend another person. The main types of conflictogens: • striving for excellence;
• manifestations of aggressiveness;
• manifestations of selfishness;
• violation of the rules;
• unfavourable coincidence of circumstances.
HOW TO AVOID CONFLICTS?
The basic law of escalation of conflictogens states that a person tries to respond to conflictogens with an even stronger conflictogen, often with the strongest one among all possible. When a person feels aggression directed towards him/her, the very first and natural reaction is to respond just as aggressively. However, if we consciously observe our reactions, see the growing conflict, and realize that it can be avoided, it is definitely worth avoiding the conflict.
CONFLICT RESOLUTION
1. COLLABORATION
This is the most effective way of resolving conflicts, when the aim is to discuss the problem constructively and look at it from different perspectives in search of a common solution. Conflicting parties seek to see the situation through the eyes of an opponent and see him/ her as a partner in the search for a common solution. In order to collaborate when resolving a conflict, it is important to reduce the level of emotionality and seek a solution together with the opponent. Motto: “Together, let’s find a way to resolve this conflict!” 2. ACCOMMODATION
It is a forced or voluntary renunciation of one’s personal positions. This strategy may be chosen by the opponent for various reasons: acknowledgement that he/she was wrong, a desire to maintain a good relationship with the opponent, a strong dependence on him/her, or the fact that the problem itself is not particularly serious.
The choice of such a strategy is motivated by the feelings of suffering and discomfort caused by the conflict, which the party, who is giving up his/her position, wants to get rid of as soon as possible. Accommodation as a solution can also be chosen when third parties get involved in the resolution of the conflict.
Motto: “I agree with your terms, just don’t attack me anymore.” 3. WITHDRAWAL
Withdrawal or avoiding solving a problem is an attempt to get out of conflict with minimal loss. Usually, the opponent moves on to this strategy after unsuccessful attempts to realize his/her needs and interests through proactive action. Such a behavioural strategy does not lead to the search for solutions, but to the suppression of the conflict. However, in the event of a long-term conflict, withdrawal can be a fairly constructive solution.
A withdrawal strategy is used when there is no time and strength to resolve a conflict in order to gain time, when one has difficulty defining and analysing the consistency of one’s actions, or when there is no desire to resolve the conflict at all.
Motto: “Let it be as it is.”
4. COMPETITION
This conflict resolution strategy conceals the struggle of each of the parties to the conflict for their personal position and interests. Competition is justified if the solution of a particular party of the conflict is maximally effective and significant for the results of the whole team and not for one micro-group or a specific person.
A competing strategy is effective when the proposed solution is extremely important or there is not enough time to seek a compromise with a competitor. Motto: “Listen, I propose this solution because… (argumentation)” HOW TO GET OUT OF DESTRUCTIVE CONFLICTS?
• Refrain from using conflictogens in communication • When communicating, avoid answering with the conflictogen when responding to the conflictogen • Try to understand the interlocutor’s position when communicating • Apologize for your mistakes
• Notice and express compliments to those around you.
