Supplementary Materials
SOLVE, The Anger Action Model

Conflict Management

Conflict is part of human nature; instead of condemning conflict we should set it to work for us (Follett). Chemical Engineering involves researching materials with conflicting properties in an attempt to find ways of making them compatible. In many cases, the conflicting properties are the reason we are able to separate, purify, or react different chemicals. In a sense, these “conflicts” allow us to solve many of our everyday problems with illness, energy, and nutrition. In business, too, we have to know when to eliminate friction and when to capitalize on it -- when to see if we can make it work for us. These principals also apply to teams, where it is also important to control or stimulate conflict if you feel it is beneficial to the team.

Conflict is defined as any situation where your concerns or desires differ from another person's (Ratchford, M., 1996). Conflict can merely be a difference of opinion. It usually means that the participants need to work at finding a shared meaning. Conflicts will occur no matter how successful a team is at being high performing. Conflict is not a sign of mismanagement; it is an unavoidable part of organizing a project. Some conflicts will be beneficial and others will be detrimental to the team's performance. Conflict can provide stimulation. (Hatch, 1997). Managing a conflict means deciding which conflicts are beneficial and which should be resolved because they inhibit the team's performance.

Most people tend to avoid conflict by saying they are "having a small disagreement” or are “just frustrated", but this is not the most constructive way of dealing with differences of opinions. Poorly managed conflict can result in extremely aggressive behavior. Some less aggressive resultant behaviors include arguing a position without stopping, interrupting, pointing a finger or pen at another person, and sneering or making ugly faces. If there is escalation of the conflict the behavior may become more aggressive. People may find themselves hollering, yelling and shouting, glaring or eyeballing someone, using name calling, put-downs, threats and ultimatums, and making 'you' or other accusatory statements. At this stage it is appropriate to have the conflict mediated by someone outside the team. If the conflict escalates to throwing things, slamming doors, using battle terminology, pounding the table, swearing, or physically getting in another person's space, the meeting should be ended with an agreement that each person will individually see the t instructor or other designated persons, or any other mediating force the team leader deems appropriate. In the last two stages of conflict escalation it is important to maintain safety for all team members and report the incident to the faculty advisor or the team coordinator as quickly as possible. This module is designed to help you recognize and resolve conflict constructively and efficiently to avoid this type of extreme situation.

The Conflict Model consists of tools to predict behaviors in conflict situations, as well as a tool that promotes resolution of conflict. Because conflict management is an important part of the collaborative process, we provide a combination of tools for team members to assess their conflict style and their ability to manage emotions. We also use these assessment tools to analyze how these individual styles and abilities will contribute to interactions between team members. The assessment tools have been used individually for years, but they can be more effective when used jointly. The conflict resolution tool, combined with the results of these assessments, is then used to encourage teams to discuss and implement new strategies for dealing with the conflict. The tools are as follows:

1. The Thomas Killman Conflict Mode Inventory (TKI) indicates an individual’s natural preference for one or more of the five conflict handling modes: competing, avoiding, compromising, collaborating, or accommodating. A person’s predispositions can affect which mode(s) a person chooses to use during conflict situations. The TKI is used to create awareness of how team members use conflict styles in different situations, both amongst themselves and dealing with others outside the team.
2. The Myers Briggs Type Indicator (MBTI) Team Report correlates the results of individual team members’ MBTI assessments to provide an overall team type. The report is used to assist the team members in understanding how to use how to think and analyze when solving problems, how to make decisions, how to perceive each other in a team situation, and how to identify situations where members need to work in a way that is different from their natural preferences. The team report supplies both a global analysis of how the team will react during conflict and a framework to help team members better understand conflict.
3. The Emotional Intelligence Inventory (EII) facilitates team members’ awareness in how they manage their emotions. This tool can be used to compare differences in emotional awareness between team members.
4. SOLVE is a mediation tool that teaches people how to use their emotional intelligence effectively in conflict resolution. With this tool, team members learn how to take responsibility for their emotions and how to reframe conflicting situations into terms that allow them to successfully settle the conflicts. (Weisinger H., 1994, Emotional Intelligence In The Workplace)

Combining the measures of ability with style preference indicators and implementation tools creates a valuable way to effectively handle conflict in teams.

Combination of these four tools allows team members to better understand how to (1) deal with conflict, (2) identify when others over or under use their predominant styles, and (3) set appropriate ground rules for the team.

Our conflict model includes the following theoretical concepts:

1. MIT Harvard Negotiation Project Model
2. Best Alternative to a Negotiated Settlement (BATNA)
3. Models of Conflict Resolution
4. Model of Use of Power