Hi, and welcome to this edition of conflict resolution-- putting the pieces together. I'm Julie Tietz, and today we're going to talk about, what is conflict? Well, it's kind of a big question because there are so many ways that we can define conflict. But for our purposes, conflict is a form of relationship in which the members find their interactions in some way impeding to their goal, needs, or well-being.
Some other key terms that we're going to need to know throughout this tutorial include parties-- individuals involved directly in a conflict. Relationships-- an association between two or more people involving some form of interaction. And finally, need and interest-- an action, belief, or physical item that a party perceives as important or essential to his or her satisfaction or happiness.
So when people tend to talk about conflict, they look at certain aspects of the conflict, such as pointing out rude statements the other person said to them or telling only their side of the story, along with only pointing out certain aspects of the conflict, people often tend to point out their own [INAUDIBLE] reactions to the conflict.
So something might be like I see people fighting, and my instinct is to go in and help out. Or on the other side of that is my personal reaction to wanting to approach my boss is I'm scared because I just received a snappy email from him, and I don't really want to get my head bit off.
It's important to remember that conflict is more than certain aspects or personal reactions. There are actually some key elements that are important to have in order for there to be a conflict. Well, first of all, there has to be parties and a relationship. And if we remember from our definitions, parties are the people that are involved in the conflict and the relationship piece is having some sort of interaction with the parties. And that's important in having an element of conflict.
Secondly, there has to be needs and interests. So if you recall also from our definition, the parties have to have a belief or a physical item that is really important to them for their satisfaction or happiness. Or it could be something along lines, as well, as something they value. And whether or not they choose to exhibit these thoughts, feelings, or value, or whether they act on them are all important in having a conflict. All of these are essential elements in conflict.
Others also may define conflict as a needs-based approach, where parties feel like their needs aren't being met. An example I can think of is I really have to have coffee in the morning before I start my day at work. If I don't have coffee, then I get angry.
And a person comes and tries to talk to me, and I haven't had my coffee, and I start breathing fire at them, and now we have a problem. And they may not know that I to have my coffee, but my needs weren't met. And so, therefore, a conflict has arisen.
Other people can define conflict as a process-based. This is an interactive process that displays incompatibility disagreement within or between social entities. When I think of process-based definition of conflict, I think of the legislature and how they debate on new bills before they're passed into law or whether or not they even get that far.
Others also can perceive or define conflict as an escalation of a disagreement. Or even as an opportunity for change, where they feel like they can grow from a conflict.
So let's recap on our definition of conflict-- a form of relationship in which the members find their interactions in some way impeding to their goal, needs, or well-being. So after we have defined conflict and looked at a couple of examples here, I think we all can, pretty much, say that we've been part of a conflict. We all have feelings. We all have thoughts and values. And when we feel like something's challenging them or we aren't able to express it, then that's when some issues do arise.
So I want to thank you for taking the time to listen, and I hope you've learned a little bit more today about conflicts. And until next time, stay peaceful.