Conflict negotiation strategies and approaches

Conflict Neg

While it is impossible to know exactly what went on behind the closed doors of the Oval Office and other meeting points during the near-lockdown in D.C., one thing is clear: the government of the United States was engaged in dysfunctional conflict. Dysfunctional conflict "hinders group performance" because no dialogue or effective communication occurs (text p. 455). There was an insufficient amount of collaboration among the parties involved. There was also task conflict, such as disagreement over the content and the goals of the project. The one point of agreement was that neither party wanted Washington to shut down; it would have been a poor public relations move. Therefore, both parties hurried to a solution that was based much more on compromise than on collaboration. Collaboration would have first clarified what each party needed -- and what their differences were, in order to reach a win-win solution. Instead, what happened was accommodation: various points-of-view were accommodated without searching for the root needs or goals of the conflicted members.

Moreover, individual parties to the conflict demonstrated dysfunctional conflict resolution tactics. The President seemed bent on compromise at all costs; it might be that President Obama's conflict resolution style is resolutely compromise-oriented. His Vice President is not a compromiser but a competitor. Biden has trouble listening to the other points-of-view and comes across as being more stubborn about his own. Reid is the limp, ineffective negotiator because of his avoidance tactics and tendency to withdraw from conflict.

If I were hired to be a mediator, I would focus on how to introduce collaboration to the procedures. The first step I would take would be to shift the discourse from antagonism and dysfunctional conflict towards functional conflict. If possible, I might bring in others to aid in the process, so that multiple perspectives and points-of-view could be introduced. I would try to focus on the positives: the tendency for Reid to fluctuate shows that he is flexible and willing to listen to others. Obama's tendency to compromise indicates the same: a desire to resolve conflict. Unfortunately, Obama believes that compromise creates win-win scenarios when in reality, compromise creates lose-lose scenarios.

Authoritative command would not work in the Washington scenario, and neither would altering the structure of the organization because the roles are firmly fixed in government procedure. Therefore, the best tactics for negotiation would be to reveal the ground rules for each party. Boehner is obviously self-interested and concerned about keeping his position as Speaker. He also needs to please the "base" of his party. However, it was apparent that the abortion bill was not as important to him as he was first letting on. As mediator, I would make sure to discover exactly how important the abortion funding issue was; and encourage him to perhaps reconsider his stance given the constitutional issues at stake. The Democrats did not effectively assert their needs and desires in this situation. It was unnecessary even to entertain the Planned Parenthood issue, especially in light of the fact that it was compromised out of the ultimate agreement.