When people come together, minor or major conflicts often arise. Even if an employee does not start off with bad intentions, unexpected factors can come to light that escalate a situation which had previously been harmless. These communication conflicts are by no means rare. In order to manage the conflict, it is necessary to uncover communication errors.
The situation is different if there are no rationally comprehensible reasons for the conflict. Sometimes conflicts arise simply because different personalities collide and people can’t be together without problems arising. These relationship issues are human nature and are difficult to avoid. This makes it all the more important to work with meaningful conflict management steps when two different personalities clash.
If it’s not the personalities, then it could be the participant’s role that can cause a conflict. In a group of people, like a professional team, you automatically take on different roles – either planned or unplanned. From time to time you may be pushed into a role that you don’t like (example: based on operational experience, management may see someone in the role of a department manager in the future, however the employee themselves does not consider themselves to have leadership qualities). The employee sees themselves in a different role to that assigned to them – a person-role conflict occurs.
The situation is similar in a power conflict. This often arises when employees in similarly high positions have to work together. A conflict arises because one person believes that they should be higher up than another. However, the other person also sees themselves as superior. This creates a power struggle that neither want to relinquish.
There may also be rational reasons for conflict. Both in personal and professional lives, views can differ within a group. The problem is often caused by differing perspectives. A material conflict therefore occurs when, for example, one wants to pursue different solutions or goals.
A conflict of values, on the other hand, is about the attitudes and convictions of those involved. They can often result from questions like these: How should situations be handled? What are the appropriate measures to take? If different beliefs emerge when answering these questions, this can sometimes lead to conflicts – since nobody likes to compromise on their values. This makes reaching a solution difficult. Conflict management must intervene in this case so that the situation doesn’t escalate.