HCM 433 MANGEMENT AND ORGANIZATIONAL BEHAVIOUR.pdf

It is however important to note (realize) that the many approaches to resolving (group)
conflicts can be easily classified according to the outcome of such resolutions. Conflict
situations – (for that matter, these could also be used in intergroup and organizational conflict
resolution). The principal classes of methods include:
i. Lose - Lose Methods
ii. Win - Lose Methods
iii. Win - win Methods
Win-win strategy is the most effective, but since the other two types are so commonly used,
they should also be understand.
1. Lose-Lose Strategy: In a lose-lose approach to conflict resolution, both parties lose. This
method will typically be employed where the parties are not sure of a successful outcome.
Hence the approach is based on the conventional wisdom that ‘half-a-loaf is better than
none’. The usage of this method can however take several forms; first compromise;
secondly paying off one of the parties in the conflict especially in the form of bribes. A
third approach is to use an outside third party or arbitrator. And finally the parties can
resort to bureaucratic rules or existing regulations to resolve the conflict. This strategy is
sometimes the only way that conflicts can be resolved but it is less a desirable method than
the other. In the final analysis, the four approaches inherent in this strategy will still be
resolved but it is less a desirable method than others. In the final analysis, the four
approaches inherent in this strategy will still lead to both parties in the conflict losing.
2. Win-Lose Strategy: A win-Lose strategy is a common way of resolving conflict in
modern society, especially in a competitive culture. One party in the other party in a
conflict situation will simply attempts to marshal its forces to win, and the other party
loses. The following characteristics are notable in a win-lose situation:
There is a clear, we-they distinction between the parties
The parties direct their energies toward each other in an atmosphere of victory and
defeat.
The parties see the issue from their own point of view
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