Handling Organizational Behavior Properly Term Paper

Organizational Behavior: Workplace Conflict

Conflict in the workplace is commonly seen, but some people handle it better than others. In my workplace, there is a lot of conflict with co-workers. Most of the conflict comes from the interpersonal relationships we have with each other, but some of it is also task conflict in that people argue over who is supposed to be doing which job or which part of a project. The task conflict can be easily resolved by assigning people specific parts of a job, and that is usually what takes place -- especially if the project is something where there could easily be arguments about who is going to complete certain parts of it. Some of the issues with co-workers are not as easily addressed, though, and those issues are all based on interpersonal relationships that involve people's personalities. When a person's basic beliefs and ideas completely conflict with another person's, but yet those two people still have to work together, handling conflict can be very difficult. Fortunately, I have learned to handle co-worker conflict fairly well, because I have a collaborative style that helps me work through difficulties.People who are collaborative, like me, can generally get through conflict with their co-workers better than people who are assertive. There are a few times when assertiveness is necessary, but for the most part it is important to be a collaborative, open-minded person. This works very well for me and my particular situation. With the kind of work I do and the dynamics of my relationships with my co-workers, being assertive would only cause a higher level of conflict that is completely unnecessary. It is tempting sometimes, when I see how something could be done better or could get handled much faster, but in the long run it makes more sense to be more open to working with others. That preserves the relationships I have with my co-workers, so workplace conflict can be kept to a minimum.

Avoiding people can definitely be the right choice. It is difficult when you have to work with them for some reason, but if you can stay away from them as….....