A REVIEW OF CONFLICT, TRANSITIONS IN CONFLICT THOUGHT, THEORIES OF CONFLICT AND ITS IMPLICATIONS FOR ORGANIZATIONS
Keywords:
Conflict, Transitions, Conflict Thought, Theories, OrganizationsAbstract
Conflict has been in existence in all spheres of human life. It is a contradiction arising from differences in interests, ideas, ideologies, orientations, beliefs, perception and tendencies. The concept of conflict has also become common knowledge in every organization as it is an integral part of administration. Every organization consists of people who differ in so many ways including their background, values, needs, skills, talents, competencies, knowledge, status, behavioural styles, interest, aggressiveness as well as level of motivation. Several authors have different definitions for conflict, but a comprehensive definition for conflict is that Conflict is a process of social interaction and a social situation, where interests and activities of participants (individuals or groups) actually, or apparently, confront, block and disable the realization of one party’s objectives. There are transitions in conflict thought from the traditional view to the human relations view and recently to the interactionists view. The theories of conflict can be considered from two perspectives; from the sociological points of view and from the psychological points of view. The sociological theories of conflict include Karl Marx’s theory, Max Weber’s theory, Dahrendorf’s Conflict theory models, Pluralist Perspective of Conflict and theory of Structural Balance. Conflict theories from psychological points of view include Maslow’s Conflict Theory and Burton’s Human Needs Theory. All these have implications for organizations, hence this review
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