Bogda & Associates |
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| Conflict is one of the most stressful aspects of organizational life. People clash about everything -- resources, strategy, decisions, goals, roles, rewards, culture, power, leadership style, inclusion, personality…the list could go on indefinitely. Unresolved conflict usually damages both the individuals involved and the organization.
Conflict, however, is not necessarily negative. The fact that people have differences of opinions, perspectives, values, and ideas about the organization's direction and how people should behave at work is also what helps organizations become more innovative, develop new strategies and alternative products, and learn to treat one another with mutual respect. Suppressed conflict, however, stalls and thwarts individual and organizational development. When conflict is managed constructively, it often becomes the foundation for individual and organizational learning and growth. The Pinch-Crunch Conflict Model above, developed by Jack Sherwood and John Glidewell in the 1970s, provides a practical framework for understanding how conflict develops and how to prevent, de-escalate, or resolve it constructively. Most relationships begin with goodwill and go through a grace period as people or groups learn to work with each other. Eventually, an individual or group violates an expectation of another person or group, and a "pinch" arises. These pinches do not usually get discussed and subsequent pinches often arise, layering themselves upon the original pinch or transgression. Multiple pinches eventually create a "crunch," or major disturbance in the working relationship, and then need to be resolved. At this point, the conflict has usually escalated so that tensions and risks are high and outside help is usually required. Bogda & Associates uses the following conflict resolution process:
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