Introduction
Working in a group requires effective collaboration and teamwork. It is common that every member’s group may have his or her own idea that can help the group in achieving a specific goal. However, not all members may be I favor of an individual idea, from which a conflict between the members themselves may arise. Relatively, the group’s collaboration and effective teamwork can be achieved in various ways. Moreover, different ideas that influence the development of conflict within the group can be addressed though conflict resolution, such as effective problem-solving and decision-making skills. In this study, we discuss various situations that call for an effective conflict resolution within a group. There are strategies that can be applied to these situations, which can also help in the improvement of group collaboration and teamwork. Although resolving a group conflict can be a challenging task, an action plan that will help solve the current conflict and prevent its possible occurrence in the future must be established.
What conflict styles have you encountered while working in groups?
While I was working in a group, I have experience two of the known conflict styles. Prior to the discussion of these experiences, it is essential to define the different styles of conflict. There are five conflict styles, which hold different characteristics, which include competing, accommodating, avoiding, compromising, and collaborating. First, a competing style of conflict is described as advocating one’s personal needs over the others’ (University of Wisconsin-Madison, 2014). Competing mostly relies on the person’s aggressive form of communication. There is a low regard of current and future relationship with the group members, while exercising a coercive power over the others. To simply put, a person who uses competing conflict style aims to gain control of the situation or discussion. Second, a contrasting style from competing is another form of conflict. This is the accommodating style. According to its characteristic, an accommodating style of conflict gives way to the group’s needs instead of one’s personal needs. A person who uses this style normally yield their own needs in a diplomatic manner. Thus, a person who uses this style allows his ideas to be overwhelmed by the group in order to maintain a good relationship with the rest of the team members. The third style is the avoiding, which from the word itself, tries not to address the issue. Using this conflict style do not create arguments between the members of the group. That is because, ideas and feelings are commonly kept unexpressed by the person. The fourth style is the compromising approach, to which the member of the group gives in after a series of tradeoffs. Lastly, collaborating style of conflict is the act of pooling the individual goals and needs towards a win-win solution. Positive communication and cooperation of each team member are the keys for achieving the success of the group.
Based on my own experience with the group, there were two conflict styles that have been evident, which are the competing and collaborating. I can say that these two are the common styles when it comes to a group working towards a specific goal. When I was working with the group, two of the group members were raising their concerns about our group project. The first person presented his idea, which he thought would be better for the whole group. However, it seems that such idea will provide more personal benefit in favor of him that for the whole group. Because of this, another group member raised an idea that seemed to be more in favor of our group project.
Then again, the first member insisted his idea by exercising his aggressiveness. There was a time that he shouted in order to emphasize what he was trying to convey. In fact, the second member was more of a diplomatic type of person, which is why, it was evident that the first person was trying to control over the whole group.
How will your approach to conflict change in the future?
My approach to conflict in the future would be better. I should first understand my own personality, so as to control myself whenever any possible conflict may happen in the future. Is should also clarify my personal needs that can be threatened by any potential conflict. Additionally, I will practice more of being a collaborator instead of being a competitor. I may have good ideas in the future, but it is not certain that such ideas are better than the others’. That is why, my approach to conflict in the future may change depending on the situation I will be in. I may have to use other styles, but I am pretty sure that I will be aiming for better outcomes of within any given situation.
What group cohesion strategies will you apply in the future teamwork?
There are several group cohesion strategies that I want to apply in the future teamwork. These include selection of team member, keeping an open communication, promoting trust, and providing assistance in resolving a conflict. Selecting a team member is important because it serves as the foundation of creating an effective group (Schreiner, 2016). However, it is not enough that a group cohesion involves ideal tem members. It is also good that the team has an open communication in order to avoid any possible conflict. This will also enable each member to present his or her own idea about an issue. Therefore, regardless if the problem is small or already big, an open communication with each member can lead to a better resolution.
In relation, an open communication will give way to the group’s improvement as there will be trust with each member. Building trust is another strategy that I will apply in my future teamwork by emphasizing the importance of honesty within the group. I believe that trust must be earned and not being asked as it will depend on how you express honesty and integrity within the group. Additionally, I also believe that challenges can strengthen the group’s cohesion. However, conflict may still arise along with such challenges. That is why I will also use another strategy to avoid further damage of our teamwork in the future by providing assistance in conflict resolution.
Describe these strategies and how they strengthen the group work
The strategy of employing an open communication in a group prevents misunderstanding among team members. Thus, an effective team means that it exercise a strong relationship with each other. Therefore, in order to improve and strengthen the cohesiveness of the group, there must be a good communication across all team members. On the other hand, building a trust will strengthen the group work because it promotes commitment to the group and increases the competence level of every member, from which a good collaboration can be developed over time. Furthermore, every member of the group must also know how to contribute their ideas whenever a conflict happens within the group. As what many people say, more ideas are better than one. If these strategies were applied in a group, there is a high possibility that goals and needs will be accomplished successfully.
What is your own decision-making style?
My own style when it comes to making a decision depends on every situation. However, there are things that I always consider when it comes to decision-making. First, I evaluate the situation or problem that needs to be decided upon. I do not use a gut reaction style as it tends to create a decision that may not be suitable for the specific situation or problem. I have a flexible decision-making style. I am open to suggestions and would appreciate other people’s views when it comes to making decisions especially on sensitive matters.
Describe this style and how you will apply it to future group work
My flexible style in decision-making is applicable to future group work because it will involve other people’s comments and views before I make the final decision. This style will also allow me to reflect on the things that I might not be aware of prior to deciding on something. I can also apply it in the future by asking my group’s feedback as to whether the decision I am about to make will bring benefits to all of us.
How will you approach problem-solving in the future?
In the future, I will approach a problem-solving situation in an open-minded method. This means that I will remove any possible barriers in communication, which is the basic structure of my approach. There must be a good communication channel between the involve individuals if the problem-solving will be between my group members. On the other hand, I will extensively evaluate the situation and make sure that there is a balanced-approach to all objections of the involved persons. I will also provide an explanation to concerned parties about what I think the reason might have been that such problem happened in the first place. In this case I will be able to find the most appropriate solution to the problem. These strategies will lead to better problem-solving outcomes.
Describe your strategies and how will you apply them to future group work
These strategies are important because it enables a peaceful resolution of the problem. In its application to future group work, such strategies can be used to let my group that every problem can be resolved in a diplomatic manner, thus chaos will only create more problems. I will not only use these strategies in solving problems in my future group work, but I will have my whole group understand that being an open-minded allows us to create more effective ideas and extensively evaluate every situation, especially the challenging ones.
Conclusion
Conflict resolution is not a mere act that one would just need to solve an issue without employing any effective strategies. Different types of conflicts that can happen in a group must be addressed by an effective decision-making approach as well as good problem-solving skills. However, these methods may not work without a proper plan on how to execute such actions. Therefore, every person must understand different factors that make up both effective problem-solving and decision-making skills, so as to guide them as they develop a better collaboration with their group.
References
Schreiner, E. (2016). Seven Strategies for Developing Cohesive Teams | Chron.com. Retrieved from http://smallbusiness.chron.com/seven-strategies-developing-cohesive-teams-17354.html
