Chapter 11 – Resolving Conflict Through Negotiation and Mediation
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Chapter 11
Resolving Conflict Through Negotiation and Mediation
CHAPTER OVERVIEW
Anything of importance in organizations today will inevitably involve some conflict. A
reasonable level of conflict is desirable and healthy, but too little or too much can paralyze
productive work. Great managers are skilled at recognizing and diagnosing conflict situations
and managing them in productive ways. Particular emphasis is given to the skills of negotiation
and mediation strategies useful to achieving win-win outcomes in conflicting situations.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
KNOWING OBJECTIVES
1. Differentiate between task and relationship conflicts in organizations.
2. Describe the conditions under which negotiation is appropriate.
3. Identify your preferred conflict resolution style.
4. Describe the stages of win-win negotiation.
5. Identify the steps of the mediation process.
DOING OBJECTIVES
1. Diagnose the cause of conflict in a dispute situation.
2. Detect the negotiating tactic being used by another party in a given negotiation.
3. Adjust your conflict resolution style to appropriately meet the needs of the situation.
4. Facilitate a resolution of a conflict situation using a superordinate goal, negotiation,
and/or mediation approach.
5. Mediate a workplace dispute.
KEY STUDENT QUESTIONS
Students have one very simple question which relates to both conflict and negotiation:
• How can I resolve conflict through negotiation?
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First and foremost, students typically perceive conflict as a bad thing – something that must be
Second, students tend to see negotiation as the only form of conflict resolution, and typically,
compromise as the only form of negotiation. The Thomas-Kilman model for conflict resolution
may or may not be familiar to them. Before you go over the model in class, have the class
Once the class has completed steps 1 and 2, tell them about the different styles of conflict
resolution. Then ask them to work in pairs to review their conflict resolution styles. Does their
behavior match their test results?
CHAPTER OUTLINE
I. Introduction
A. All conflict is not the same
B. Different styles of conflict resolution have different pros and cons
C. A significant portion of a manager’s job involves negotiations
D. Conflict situations are often highly charged and emotional
E. Myths of conflict and negotiation
1. Conflict is always dysfunctional
a. Conflict can also stimulate innovation and improve group decision-making
2. Conflict is generally a personality problem
a. Less to do with personality and more to do with perceptions and scarce resources
b. Recurring lesson is to separate the people from the problem
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3. Negotiation creates a winner and loser
a. Sometimes yes sometimes no (e.g., agree to disagree or call it a draw)
b. Break out of the win-lose mindset and seek win-win outcomes
4. You should always negotiate
5. Good conflict mediators are born, not made
a. Some people have a natural skill
b. Effective mediation is a learned skill
c. Those who wing it are less successful
II. Types of Conflict and Their Effects
A. Task Conflict
1. Conflict over tasks, ideas and issues that is divorced from evaluations of people’s
character
2. Can be beneficial to more effective decision-making and problem solving through
healthy level of constructive criticism and evidence-based discussion
B. Relationship Conflict
1. Personalized and highly threatening and damaging for personal relationships, team
functioning and problem solving
2. People are preoccupied with retaliation, increasing their personal power or attempting
to restore cohesion, rather than the task
C. Conflict can have both positive and negative effects
1. Positive effects of conflict
a. Brings problems into the open that might otherwise be ignored
2. Negative effects of conflict
a. Can lead to negative emotions and stress
3. DeDreu found a curvilinear relationship between task conflict and outcomes
4. Meta-analysis revealed that task conflict and group performance were more positively
related when the association between task and relationship conflict was relatively
weak
5. Studies have shown that when the conflict occurs (early or late in the process) and
how it is addressed determines the outcome
a. High performing teams had very little conflict early, low performing teams had
conflict from the beginning
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b. During the middle of the project, high performing teams experienced moderate
levels of conflict, low-performing teams maintained consistent level
c. Late in the project the low-performing teams had a high degree of conflict and the
high-performing teams experienced much less
III. Managing Conflict
A. Diagnosing Conflict Sources
1. First diagnose whether conflict is focused on relationships or tasks
a. Relationship-centered disputes stem from what has transpired between two or
more people
i. Often deteriorate into name-calling sessions or worse
2. Questions to use as starting points for diagnosing conflict
a. Do the disputants have access to the same information (informational)?
i. Informational factors come into play when people have developed their point
of view on the basis of a different set of facts
ii. The parable of the blind men and the elephant illustrates this point
b. Do the disputants perceive common information differently (perceptual)?
i. Perceptual factors exert their influence when people have different images or
interpretations of the same thing
ii. Each person selects the data that support their point of view and tend to
devalue information that does not support it
c. Are the disputants significantly influenced by their role in the organization (role)?
i. Role factors have the potential to contribute to conflict when people believe
their roles are in conflict or “turf” is threatened
ii. Can occur at the organization level or an interpersonal level
a.) Division managers fighting for their work unit in a budget allocation
meeting
b.) Problems arising when a friend becomes the boss
d. What stressful factors in the environment might disputants by reacting to
(environment)?
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a.) Healthy competition can be positive
b.) A mixed-motive situation occurs when employees are rewarded if they
compete aggressively but told to work toward department’s overall
outcome as a whole
e. In what way to disputants’ personal differences play a role in the dispute
(personal)?
iii. Conflict can also occur when people are too much alike
B. Matching Conflict Styles with Situations: Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument
1. Competition is characterized as being dominant and non-supportive Individuals
pursue own goals, often at the expense of others
a. Power-oriented mode, many situations call for this style
2. Accommodation is behaving in a supportive, submissive, unassertive and cooperative
manner
a. If this is the most frequent conflict management style, others will ultimately not
3. Avoidance is behaving in a submissive, non-supportive, unassertive and
uncooperative manner
a. Might take the form of sidestepping an issue, postponing an issue or withdrawing
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4. Compromise is finding some expedient, mutually acceptable solution that partially
satisfies everyone involved
i. Splitting the difference, exchanging concessions or seeking a quick middle-
5. Collaboration is behaving in a dominant, supportive, assertive and cooperative
manner
a. Exploring disagreements, concluding to resolve a condition causing conflict or
confronting and trying to find creative solution
b. Collaborative negotiation is where both parties must work together to achieve
outcome that is important to both
c. Collaboration is the most important conflict management strategy in an
organization
decision-making process
6. The conflict style actually used is based less on situational considerations and more
on manager’s dominant style or the positions of the parties involved
a. Choice of conflict management strategy is influenced by whether with boss, peers
or subordinates
b. When conflict is with a boss, people try to “convince” less frequently
C. Seeking Superordinate Goals
1. A superordinate goal is an objective so valuable to both parties that it transcends the
dispute
2. Social scientists have learned that one way to reduce conflict is to have them work
together on a project of mutual interest
IV. Effective Negotiations
A. To Negotiate or Not? Recognizing Negotiation Situations
1. Important to question whether an issue is truly nonnegotiable
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B. The Negotiation Scorecard: Outcomes of an Ideal Negotiation
1. All parties believe they made a good deal
2. The relationship is maintained or even improved
3. Each negotiator’s constituents are satisfied with the agreement
C. Win-Lose Negotiation
1. Someone has to lose in the negotiation process
2. In some situations the possibility of losing is not acceptable
a. Negotiations with your boss
b. Your peers, both individually and as a group
D. Integrative (Win-Win) Negotiation
1. Focused on cooperative problem-solving
2. Treat the conflict as being separate from the relationship and work to seek a mutually
acceptable solution.
3. A critical challenge is to propose a solution that helps both parties meet their own
needs
V. Stages of Effective Negotiations
A. Negotiation preparation
1. Surveys say planning and preparation are the most important part of negotiation
B. Organize the issues
1. Identify and define the issues
2. Prioritize the issues
C. Talk to other people who have information you need
1. Seek out other people who have conducted similar negotiations
2. Talk to your constituents
3. Talk beforehand to the other parties to agree on topics to be negotiated
D. Research the parties you will be negotiating with
1. Understand why they are willing to negotiate
2. Helpful to know if they will use a competitive or cooperative approach
a. Learn their reputation in negotiations
b. If the issues are resources, they may move toward a competitive style
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c. An interest in maintaining a good relationship suggests a cooperative approach
d. Parties are often more competitive in a one-time approach
e. Lack of trust and information hoarding are characteristic of competitive
negotiations
f. Types of difficult negotiators
explanations
false sense of superiority
E. Consider BATNA (Best alternative to a negotiated agreement)
1. Use as yardstick against which you measure any possible agreement
a. An agreement better than your BATNA should be accepted
b. An agreement worse than your BATNA should not be accepted
2. A good or poor BATNA determines the strength or weakness of your negotiating
position
F. Understand the needs of the other parties
1. Most people start negotiations by stating their positions
2. Knowing only the position does not tell you why the other party wants a particular
outcome
3. To view negotiation as a mutual problem-solving situation, information must be
shared
4. Listening to the needs and interests is critical
G. List and discuss possible options
1. A partial solution can be a building block for a complete solution
2. Generating multiple creative options to discuss is a source of power for the negotiator
3. Complex negotiations often happen in stages across time
H. Choose among the options
1. Often helpful to discuss options in hypotheticals
2. Look for ways to improve options already on the table
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I. Use objective standards and norms
1. Look for objective standards or precedents that are supportive of desired negotiation
outcome
2. Multiple objective criteria may apply to a negotiation
VI. Employing Process Tactics During Negotiations
A. Look for key information from the other party
1. Ask probing questions: why, how, what if, what would be wrong with ….?
2. Determine negotiating party’s BATNA
3. Understand the other party’s needs and interests
4. Find out whether they have a deadline
B. Making concessions
1. Experienced negotiators always leave room for some concessions
2. Evidence shows parties feel better about a settlement when the negotiation had a
b. Unions felt they had no influence on the outcome
c. Generally seen as bad faith negotiating
C. Common forms of leveraging
1. Leveraging refers to the principle of using a small advantage, or perceived advantage,
to gain a much later benefit
2. Leverage of legitimacy gives the impression an issue is not negotiable
a. Make it look nonnegotiable (official price sheet, final sale price)
b. Ask: Usually nothing is lost by asking
3. Leverage of timing is common tactic (get up and leave)
a. Can control when the negotiation will continue
b. Get opportunity to collect thoughts and plan next step
c. Gain an opportunity to consult with others and get more information
d. Use time to talk to other potential negotiating parties to see if a better deal is
possible elsewhere
e. Can put pressure on other party if other party is facing a deadline
4. Leverage of limited authority
a. Sometimes we benefit in negotiation when our authority to negotiate is limited by
a boss or some other entity
b. Overuse of the tactic can frustrate the other party
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c. If tactic is used on you, circumvent the person and go to the person who does
have authority
D. Specific Process Tactics
1. Silence
a. Most people are uncomfortable with silence so they will begin talking and
possibly start giving in on their side
b. If someone uses silence on you, restate your offer
2. The Wince
a. Visible negative reaction to another person’s offer lets counterpart know that you
believe the offer is out of range
b. If used on you, often best to respond with silence to force them to explain
3. The Trial Balloon
5. Outrageous Behavior
a. Socially unacceptable behavior intended to force the other side to make a move
b. Best response is often to avoid reacting to the behavior
6. Red Herring
a. Tactic when one party brings up a relatively minor point to distract the other side
form the more important issues at hand
b. Generally signals a breach of good faith bargaining
7. The Written Word
a. Tactic of placing something in writing to make it appear non-negotiable when it
actually is
8. Bluffing
a. Bluffing carries a risk
E. The End of Negotiation
1. Keep multiple issues on the table until the very end
2. Determine what level of documentation is needed
a. If you ask for the agreement in writing you can offend the other party or strain the
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3. Evaluate how well it went, analyzing the process as well as the content
4. Actions of superior negotiators
a. In negotiation planning:
i. Consider more possible solutions and options
ii. Spend more time looking for common interests
iii. Think more about long-term consequences
b. In the actual negotiation:
vii. Summarize the progress made during the negotiation
VII. Mediation
A. Often a third party is used when negotiations break down
1. Outside party who specializes in helping people in conflict
2. A manager or a friend with conflicting associates
B. Trust Building
1. An effective mediator builds trust through:
a. Choosing a comfortable, neutral space
2. Avoid all substantive issues until both parties have made some small agreements
3. An effective mediator also:
a. Is dogged in learning and applying facts
b. Frames the disputed claims into the real issues
c. Maintains neutrality
d. Seeks to understand the underlying interests of each party
C. The Mediation Process
1. Stabilize the setting
a. Greet the parties
b. Indicate where you want them to sit
c. Identify yourself and each party by name
d. Offer water, paper, pencil, and patience