Effective Conflict Management Styles and Problem Solving Methods

Problem solving group:

Four to seven people who work together to complete a specific task or solve a particular problem

Responsibility of group members:

Be committed to the group goal, keep discussions on track, complete individual assignments on time, encourage input from all members, manage conflict among members

Conflict:

Disagreement or clash among ideas, principles, or people

Groupthink:

When group members accept information and ideas without subjecting them to critical analysis

Five common conflict management styles

Withdrawing: A conflict management style that involves physically or psychologically removing yourself from the conflict

Accommodating: A conflict management style that involves accepting others' ideas while neglecting your own

Forcing: A conflict management style that involves satisfying your own needs with no concern for the needs of others and no concern for the harm it does to the group

Compromising: A conflict management style that involves individuals giving up part of what they want in order to provide at least some satisfaction to other opinions

Collaborating: A conflict management style that involves discussing the issues, describing feelings, and identifying the characteristics of an effective solution before deciding what the ultimate solution will be

Perception checking:

A verbal statement that reflects your understanding of another's behavior

Paraphrasing:

A verbal statement that conveys your understanding of another person's verbal message

Systematic problem solving method:

An efficient six-step method for finding an effective solution to a problem

Criteria:

Standards used for judging the merits of proposed solutions

Brainstorming:

An uncritical, nonevaluative process of generating alternatives by being creative, suspending judgment, and combining or adapting the ideas of others

Symposium:

A discussion in which a limited number of participants present individual speeches of approximately the same length dealing with the same subject

Panel discussion:

A problem-solving discussion in front of an audience

Electronic conferencing:

A widespread method for individuals to engage in live exchange in real time without being in the same room

Teleconferencing:

Where a group of individuals share information aurally over the telephone

Videoconferencing:

Where a group of individuals share information aurally and visually over the internet

Streaming video:

A prerecording that is sent in compressed form over the internet

Streaming slide show:

Series of fifteen to twenty slides posted on the internet, sometimes narrated with a voice-over

Group dynamics:

How individuals work together as a team toward a common goal