Final Ass Ob

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AN ASSIGNMENT OF ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR ON “CONFLICT PROCESS” For partial fulfillment of Second year B.B.A (semester 3rd ) Academic year 2009-10

SUBMITED TO: Chintan Thakkar, A faculty member of, ‘VIVEKANAND COLLEGE FOR BBA’ SUBMITED BY:

ROLL NO

1.

Patel Dhara R.

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2.

Patel Milan R.

73

3.

Patel Mohmedtalha V.

74

4.

Patel Neha H.

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5. Patel Reena S.

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6. Vyas Bijal A.

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Introduction of conflict: In our day-to-day life, many conflicts are observed in the world. In a simple word, conflict may be understood as fight, war, collision or disagreement. The conflict may be within an individual when there is in-compatibility between his or her own goal and event; may be between two individuals. When one does not see eye to eye with another, and in the process tries to block or frustate the attempts of another; or between two groups in organization.

Definition of conflict: “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.”

Conflict Definition

Positive Feelings

Negative Emotions Chung and Megginsion define conflict as:

“The struggle between in compatible or opposing needs, wishes,

ideas,

interests

or

people.

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Conflict

arises

when

individuals and groups encounter goal that both parties cannot obtain satisfactorily.” A cognitive conflict refers to differences in perspectives or judgment about issues. Effective conflict is emotional and directed of other people. Affective conflicts are likely to be destructive because it can lead to anger, goal-displacement poor decisions. The traditional view of conflict, relavent during the 1930s and 1940s, was the conflict in organizations was unnecessary and harmful. Early managers and management

writers generally believe that the

appearance of conflict was a clear signal that there was something wrong with the organizations. They thought that conflict would develop only if manager failed to apply

sound

management

principles in directing the organizations or if manager failed

to

communicate

employees interest

the

that

to

common

bind

management

and

employees together. If these failures were corrected, according to the traditional view, organizations should operate smoothly. For example, Taylor believes that if the principles of scientific management were applied, the age-old conflict between the management and labour would disappear. The

traditional

view

of

conflict

started

to

change

as

organizational behaviour researchers and management writers began to

identify

causes

of

organizational

conflict

independent

on

management error and as the advantages of effectively managed conflict started to be recognized. Conflict can lead to search for 4

solutions. Thus, it is an instrument of organizational innovation and change.

The Process of Conflict: Pondy’s developed a process model of conflict that is very useful in understanding how conflict start and different stages it goes through. Pondy’s delineates the five stages involved in conflict episode. These are: 1. Latent conflict 2. Perceived conflict 3. Felt conflict 4. Manifest conflict 5. conflict aftermath

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Pondy’s five stages of conflict process

1. Latent conflict: When two or more parties needed each other to achieved desired objectives, there is potential for conflict. Factor or an antecedent exists in situation that can become Potential forces to induce conflict. These can be, for example: •

Competition for scare resources

•

Communication barrier

•

Divergence of subunit goals and

•

Role ambiguities

For instance, if resources are limited in an organization and there are demand for different kind of resources. Such as men, material and money from various section in the organization, such situational factor are very much conflict inducing. Latent

conflict

exists

whenever

individuals,

groups,

organizations or nations have difference that bother one or the other, but those differences are not great enough to cause one side to act to alter the situation. Difference power, resources, different interests or values all have the potential to spark conflict if a triggering event occurs. Citing Collins, Paul Wehr observed that; “Social life is above all struggle for power and status regardless of the type of structure. An inventible power differential between groups and between individuals, produce latent conflict in all social relations.”

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Latent conflict is often rooted in long standing economic inequality, or in groups’ unequal access to potential power. The government may be unresponsive to the need of a minority or lower power group strong value or status differences may exists. Any of these issues could emerge as an open conflict after a triggering event. Antecedents of conflicts are interdependence, different goals and ambiguity of responsibility. They do not automatically create conflict, when that exists, they make it possible. Latent conflict often arises when a change occurs. Conflict is likely to be caused by a budget cutback, a change in organizational direction, a change in personal goals and assignment of a new project to an already overloaded team.

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2. Perceived conflict:

This is the stage at which members become aware of a problem. Incompatibility of needs is perceived and tension begins as the parties begin to worry about what will happen. However, no party feels that it is being overtly threatened. Sometimes

conflict

may

be

perceived

when

latent

conditions are not in existence in the system. Such a situation arises when one party perceives the other to be likely to thwart or frustrate his/her goal. Let it be clarified with an imaginary example, “Suppose the production manager hears the marketing manager saying that he requires more sales persons to achieve the set target for the year 2008-09. As the production manager also requires more mechanists to step up production, he perceives the likelihood of a conflict developing between him and the marketing manager. This is because, given the limited resources of organization, if more sales personal are hired, less money will be available to hire more mechanics for the production division. According to this explanation, conflict is said to the result from the party’s misunderstanding of each other to position it is argued that such conflict can be resolved by improving communication between the parties. This model has been the basis of a wide variety of management techniques aimed at improving interpersonal relation. Of course, is the party true position in opposition then open more communication may only exacerbate the conflict.

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3. Felt conflict:

At this stage, parties become emotionally involved and begin to focus on differences of opinion and opposing interest – sharpening perceived conflict. Internal tensions and frustration begin to crystallized around specific, define issues and people begin to build and emotional commitment to their position. Emotional involvement in a conflict creating anxiety tenseness, frustration and hostility is known as felt conflict. It is that stage when the conflict is not only perceived but actually felt and cognized. In a felt conflict people feeling and attitudes towards each other, and a particular cause of conflict will further affect their eventual behaviour.

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4. Manifest conflict:

This is the stage where conflicts become visible. In this stage the two confronting parties using themselves in behaving different form such as open aggression, apathy, sabotage, withdrawal and perfect obedience to rules. In other words, the behaviour of conflicting parties includes the statements, action and reaction to each other. In other words, parties engage in actions that help achieve own objectives and thwart those of others. Conflict behaviors vary form the suitable indirect and highly controlled form of interference to direct, aggressive, violent and controlled struggle. At the recognizational level, strikes, or locks-out are the result. One

important

factor

is

that

the

behavior

must

be

interpreted in the contex in which it takes place. If A does not interact with B, it may be either because A and B are not related in organizational sense, or because A has withdrawn a too stressful relationship, or because A is drawn away from the relationship by other competing demands upon his time. In other words, knowledge of the organizational requirements and of the expectations and motives of the participants appear to be necessary to characterize the behavior of conflictful. This suggests that behavior should be defined to be conflictful, if and only if, some or all of participants perceived it to be conflictful. Should the term manifest conflict be reserved for behavior, which, in the eyes of the actors is deliberately and consciously designed to frustrate another in the pursuit of his overt or covert goals. In other word member of an organization is said to engage in

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conflictful

behaviour

if

he

consciously;

but

not

necessarily

deliberately, blocks another member’s goal achievement.

5. Conflict aftermath:

Each conflict episode, is but one of the sequence of such episodes that constitute the relationship among organizational participants. If the conflict is genuinely resolved to the satisfaction of all participants, the basis for a more co-operative relationship may be laid; or the participants in their drive for a more ordered relationship may focus on latent conflicts not previously perceived and dealt with. On other hand, if the conflict is merely suppressed but not resolved, the latent condition of conflict may be aggravated and explode in more serious form until they are rectified or until the relationship dissolves. This legacy of conflict episode is called “conflict aftermath”. However,

an

organization

is

not

a

closed

system.

The

environment in which embedded may become more benevolent alleviate the condition of latent conflict. For example,by making more resources available to the organization. However, a more malevolent environment may precipitate new arises. The development of each episode is determined by a complex combination of the affect of the predicting episode and the environmental milieu.

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