Conflict Management Styles
Storyboard Text
- Concern for self
- High
- Low
- Competing
- Avoiding
- I want to eat at TruReligion
- Conflict Management Styles
- You are right. I can probably find a part-time job to work in my off hours.
- Low
- Concern for others
- Compromising
- Fine. Then where will we eat?
- I cleaned the bedroom today so it is your turn to clean the bathroom Mary.
- Sure, I am fine with that!
- Accommodating
- Collaborating
- I don't want to talk about it. You wouldn't understand.
- I did the dishes and took out the trash. I do everything. You do it!
- High
- Shake Shack!
- And I can up my hours by picking up some extra shifts at the clinic
- Hey, could you turn off the Bachelor, I really wanted to catch the basketball game!
- James, we need to earn more money if we are going to have a child.
- Mary, why do you always use the stairlift? Don't you know that it is a waste of electricity?
- Lets go to Zupas!
- But I don't want breakfast food...
- Competing
- Avoiding
- Conflict is an unavoidable part of relationships. When handled well, conflict can strengthen relationships and allow them to flourish. When handled poorly, conflict can damage relationships. Robert Blake and Jane Mouten identified the following 5 methods for conflict management based on your concern for yourself, and your concern for others. Competing, avoiding, accommodating, compromising and collaborating. Let us follow James and Mary as they navigate these strategies for managing conflict.
- Accommodating
- The competing style represents a high concern for self and a low concern for others.Here we see James and Mary both competing with each other over who did the most chores. They are each using on their own personal contributions to the household chores as excuse not to clean the bathroom. They are not taking into account the contributions of the other.This management style can be beneficial if both parties view the competition as positive though it can quickly become toxic if competitors try to pull each other down.
- Compromising
- The avoiding style represents a low concern for self and others.In this scene James is asking Mary why she uses the stairlift since he views it as a waste of electricity. Mary chooses to avoid the conflict entirely hoping that it will go away on its own.People may choose this management style if they are uncomfortable engaging in conflict. This strategy can be used in order to maintain harmony within the relationship, but if it is the sole method used, it can lead to unresolved conflict and dissatisfied relationships.
- Collaborating
- The accommodating style represents a low concern for self and a high concern for others.Here we see Mary asking James to change the channel from the show that he was watching so that she can watch the basketball game. James is accommodating Mary by sacrificing watching the Bachelor so that she can watch the game.Accommodation can be a great tool for maintaining peace in relationships, but overuse may result in resentment. It may also be seen as weak or feeble in individualistic societies.
- The compromising style represents a moderate concern for self and for others.In this scene James and Mary are deciding where to eat. James wants to eat at Zupas while Mary wants TruReligion. When they cannot come to an agreement, they both decide on Shake Shack.Using the compromising strategy requires both parties to sacrifice what they really want in order to find some common ground. While compromising can take patience, it will often lead to better outcomes that accommodating, avoiding or competing.
- The collaborating style represents a high concern for self and others.Here we see Mary discussing with James the need to earn more money so that they can financially support a child. James offers to look for a part time job in order to contribute while Mary says that she will pick up extra shifts at the clinic.Collaborating is generally the most difficult style of conflict resolution, as it requires lots of imagination, energy and patience. The objective of collaboration is to reach a win-win.
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