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Conflict Management in Relationships: Strategies for Productive Outcomes

Learn how to effectively manage conflict in relationships, addressing disagreements and fostering healthy debate. Explore factors affecting conflict, such as power dynamics, attitudes, culture, and communication channels. Discover strategies to manage conflict, including escapist, challenging, and cooperative approaches. Gain insights into conflict outcomes like compromise, win-win, and lose-lose situations. Enhance your skills in conflict resolution for healthier and stronger relationships.

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Conflict Management in Relationships: Strategies for Productive Outcomes

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  1. Chapter 8 Managing Conflict in Relationships

  2. The Break Up (2006)

  3. Conflict A negative interaction between two or more interdependent people, rooted in some actual or perceived disagreement

  4. Conflict Management The way we engage in conflict and address disagreements with our relational partners

  5. Unproductive Conflict • Conflict that is managed poorly • Has a negative impact on the individuals and the relationship • Can lead to health problems • Leads to aggression in the relationship

  6. Productive Conflict • Conflict that is managed effectively • Fosters healthy debate • Leads to better decision making • Spurs relationship growth

  7. Conflict Triggers • Inaccurate perceptions • Unbalanced costs and rewards • Incompatible goals • Provocation

  8. Factors Affecting Conflict • Power Dynamics Differences in power related to: • Resources • Feelings • Anything the other values

  9. Factors Affecting Conflict • Attitudes Toward Conflict • Affect how willing you are to discuss disagreements • Affect how productively you handle conflict • Communication boundary management

  10. Factors Affecting Conflict • Culture and Conflict • Individualistic cultures • Emphasize personal needs, rights, and identity • “I” attitude • Collectivistic cultures • Emphasize group identity and needs • “We” attitude

  11. Factors Affecting Conflict • Culture and Conflict • Religious differences • Gender differences • Criticism and complaints • Contempt • Defensiveness • Stonewalling

  12. Factors Affecting Conflict • Communication Channel • Poor channel choices can lead to conflict • Appropriate Channels?

  13. Strategies for Managing Conflict • Escapist Strategies • Try to prevent or avoid direct conflict • Can be safety reasons, practical reasons, or strategic reasons for this strategy

  14. Strategies for Managing Conflict • Challenging Strategies • Assertiveness • Get what you want without letting anxiety, guilt, or embarrassment get in the way • One partner wins and the other loses

  15. Strategies for Managing Conflict • Cooperative Strategies • Focus on issues • Debate and argue • Consider options and alternatives • Consider the importance of the outcome • Reassure your partner

  16. Conflict Outcomes • Compromise • Both sides give up a little to get a little • Can be arrived at through: • Trading • Random selection • Has disadvantages for long-term important relationships

  17. Conflict Outcomes • Win-Win • Both parties meet their own goals • Each party helps the other party with his/her goals • The relationship is improved

  18. Conflict Outcomes • Lose-Lose Neither party gets what they want • Separation Remove yourself from the situation to end the conflict • Allocation of Power Take responsibility for some decisions

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