One way to think about what people do when they resolve conflict is that they solve a problem together.
Another way to think about it is that they make a decision—again, together. Sometimes, problem solving and decision making are treated as synonymous. For convenience, we distinguish between the two in order to make clearer the ways in which they complement each other, even though the processes are intermingled in the course of conflict resolution.
In the “Problem Solving” section of this chapter, we discuss diagnosis of the conflict and also the development of alternative possibilities for resolving a conflict. In “Decision Making,” we consider a range of the kinds of decisions people involved in resolving conflict have to make, both individually and together, including choice among the alternative possibilities and commitment to the choice that is made. When faced with the necessity for commitment and choice, the parties may decide that the alternatives are inadequate and reiterate the process of diagnosis and development of alternatives (problem solving); there may be repeated cycles of such reiteration before a conflict is resolved. This implies a cooperative conflict resolution process consisting of four general phases: (1) diagnosing the conflict, (2) identifying alternative solutions, (3) evaluating and choosing a mutually acceptable solution, and (4) committing to the decision and implementing it. As we discuss in this chapter, this process is not strictly linear, and it will often be necessary to loop back through parts of it repeatedly.It is thus possible to think about problem solving and decision making as components of a broader conflict resolution process. Research and practice over the past few decades have shown these ways of thinking about conflict to be profitable both for understanding conflict and for developing constructive approaches to resolving it. We begin by suggesting a simple model of the interaction between problem-solving and decision-making processes in conflict resolution. This model introduces a framework and guide for the remainder of the chapter.
More on the topic One way to think about what people do when they resolve conflict is that they solve a problem together.:
- One way to think about what people do when they resolve conflict is that they solve a problem together.
- DIALOGUE: A DIFFERENT MODE OF COMMUNICATING AND RELATING
- PROBLEM SOLVING AS STRATEGY
- PROBLEM SOLVING
- Dialogue as a Conflict Management Strategy
- UNDERSTANDING PROBLEM SOLVING AND DECISION MAKING IN CONFLICT SITUATIONS
- STRATEGIES OF CONFLICT RESOLUTION
- INTERPERSONAL CONFLICT
- OUR MODEL OF LEARNING THROUGH REFLECTION ON EXPERIENCE
- PROBLEM-SOLVING APPROACHES IN INTERNATIONAL CONFLICT: INTERACTIVE CONFLICT RESOLUTION