BUS272 TB

312 Part 3 Interacting Effectively
of your work group does not necessarily make you the best person to manage conflict
with other groups.
Another intriguing question about loci is whether conflicts interact or buffer one
another. Assume, for example, that Dana and Alain are on the same team. What
happens if they do not get along interpersonally (dyadic conflict) and their team also
has high personality conflict? What happens to their team if two other team members,
Shawna and Justin, do get along well? It’s also possible to ask this question at the intragroup
and intergroup level. Intense intergroup conflict can be quite stressful to group
members and might well affect the way they interact. A 2012 study found, for example,
that high levels of conflict between teams caused individuals to focus on complying
with norms within their teams. 13
Thus, understanding functional and dysfunctional conflict requires not only that
we identify the type of conflict; we also need to know where it occurs. It’s possible
that while the concepts of task, relationship, and process conflict are useful in understanding
intragroup or even dyadic conflict, they are less useful in explaining the effects
of intergroup conflict.
Thinking about conflict in terms of type and locus helps us realize that it’s probably
inevitable in most organizations, and when it does occur, we can attempt to make it as
productive as possible.
3
Identify the conditions
that lead to conflict.
Sources of Conflict
A number of conditions can give rise to conflict. They need not lead directly to conflict,
but at least one of these conditions is necessary if conflict is to surface. For simplicity’s
sake, these conditions (which we can also look at as causes or sources of conflict)
have been condensed into three general categories: communication, structure, and
personal variables. 14
Chris Seward/MCT/Newscom/Newscom
IBM benefits from the diversity of employees like Greg Labows (left) and Tsegga Medhin, who engage
in functional conflict that improves the company’s performance. At IBM, diversity drives innovation. For
innovation to flourish, IBM relies on the creative tension from different ideas, experiences, perspectives,
skills, interests, and thinking.