Conflict Styles and Conflict Transformation: Possibilities for New Connections

17 Pages Posted: 13 Jul 2006

See all articles by Lydia Tolar

Lydia Tolar

North Carolina State University

Jessica Katz Jameson

North Carolina State University - Department of Communications

Date Written: July 2006

Abstract

Opportunities to integrate conflict management models that have been heretofore viewed as parallel or even incompatible should be explored, as they contribute to the ongoing scholarly goal of parsimony while simultaneously broadening our thinking about organizational conflict. Two such elements that have not been explicitly considered within the context of each other are the construct of conflict styles (e.g., Rahim, 1985, 1986; Thomas and Kilmann, 1974, 1977) and the theory and practice of transformative mediation (Bush and Folger, 1994, 2005). Yet, when the relationship between self and other - the central variables within the conflict styles construct (Rahim and Bonoma, 1979) - are conceptualized, the continuum of conflict styles can be seen as a still shot of Bush and Folger's dynamic model of conflict transformation. This paper reviews the theoretical underpinnings of the predominant conflict styles models and shows how a re-examination of the notion of self and other problematizes our usual assumptions about conflict styles. We then look at the ways in which connecting the traditional conflict literature with the more contemporary work of Bush and Folger creates a new framework for thinking abut conflict styles and how they are used to balance the dialectical tension between autonomy and connection.

Suggested Citation

Tolar, Lydia and Jameson, Jessica Katz, Conflict Styles and Conflict Transformation: Possibilities for New Connections (July 2006). IACM 2006 Meetings Paper, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=915949 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.915949

Lydia Tolar (Contact Author)

North Carolina State University ( email )

Hillsborough Street
Raleigh, NC 27695
United States

Jessica Katz Jameson

North Carolina State University - Department of Communications ( email )

Hillsborough Street
CB 8104
Raleigh, NC 27695
United States
919-515-9737 (Phone)

HOME PAGE: http://https://communication.chass.ncsu.edu/faculty_staff/jameson

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