conflict is believed to happen when the disagreement about the goals, behavior, attitudes and needs appears Verderber 1984: 97.
They may be many other causes or sources of the conflict. Isenhart and Spangle 2000: 14-15 resume the most common sources of conflict into seven
sources. The first is data – people often have differences of opinion about the best source, reliability, or interpretation of data. The second is interest – conflict
specifically happens when two or more parties have different interest. The third is procedures – parties will not involve in a discussion if they do not agree with the
procedure in solving the problem. The fourth is values – the hardest conflict will occur when the priority of values is different. The fifth is relationships – a conflict
exists when people can not trust each other or respect each other’s feeling. The sixth is roles – a conflict appears because of the imbalance role of the people
among the rules towards their own roles. The last is communication – conflict frequently results from how something is said and not interpreted among people.
d. Styles of Conflicts
According to Isenhart and Spangle, there are five styles which described some of the most common ways how people approach conflict 2000: 26-27.
They are avoiding, accommodation, comprising, competitive, and collaborative. In avoiding style, one party denies that there is a conflict. He or she insists
not to change the topic; he or she tries to avoid talking or discussing the conflict. This style is the most effective because there is danger of physical violence. The
issue that the parties have is not important; there is no achievement of goals, or the complexity of the situation which prevents the solution.
When one party sacrifices his or her own interests and concerns for other as a result the parties can achieve the interests; this situation is called
accommodation style. This style is effective in situations in which one party feels the impossibility in achieving his or her own so that the outcome is not important.
Furthermore, when a party thinks that satisfying his or her goal might alter or damage the relationship with the other party, this style can be conducted.
Through recognitions by all parties, each party’s fulfillment of interest is considered to be only partial. In other word, each party sacrifices part of his or her
interest to achieve a negotiation. This compromising style happens in situation that requires a quick resolution of the issue, especially when other parties resist
collaboration, when complete achievement of goals is not important, or when there will be no hard feelings for settling for less than expected.
Competitive style is characterized by aggressive, self-focused, forcing, verbally assertive, and uncooperative behaviors that are done to satisfy one party’s
interests at the expense of the interests of others. This style is effectively used in situations in which decisions must be made quickly, then the option of the
solution is restricted. For that, there is nothing to lose by pushing, other parties resist cooperation, and there is no consequence of damaging the relationship.
Unlike the competitive style, collaborative style involves the active listening, issues-focused and also emphatic communication. This style seeks to
satisfy the interests and concerns of all parties. The situation in which power is reasonable balanced, the long term relation is valued, is suitable for the
collaborative style. This style requires the cooperative behavior of both parties and enough time to create an integrative solution that will satisfy both parties.
e. Conflict Resolutions
