Types of conflicts and their forms. spreading dissatisfaction among the widest sections of the population with the current state of affairs

When studying the modern literature on conflicts, we were able to identify 112 definitions and significant differences in their wording.

Here are just the most typical:

• Conflict- this is a manifestation of objective or subjective contradictions, expressed in the confrontation of the parties.
• Conflict- this is the most acute way to resolve significant contradictions that arise in the process of interaction, which consists in countering the subjects of the conflict and is usually accompanied by negative emotions.

According to F. Glazl, many Anglo-American authors emphasize in their definitions conflicting goals or interests, which pursue the parties, but do not give a clear definition of the concept of "conflict".

From all the definitions of the definition of "conflict" a number of questions arise. What contradictions are significant and what is a contradiction in general and how do they differ from conflicts?

Virtually no one, with the exception of Yu.V. Rozhdestvensky, does not define contradiction as a speech action. He identifies three stages in the development of the struggle of interests that lead to conflict. “The actions in this struggle can be divided, as it were, into three stages of intensity: differences of opinion, contradictions in discussions, and direct struggle in the form of conflicts in actions.” Thus, we will consider any statement of an authoritarian type from the 1st person in an approved form in any form of literature as a difference.

From our point of view, dialogue can be considered a contradiction, i.e. speech action when the differences of the parties are expressed.

Conceptual scheme characterizing essence of the conflict should cover four main characteristics: structure, dynamics, functions and conflict management.

The structure of the conflict is divided into:

• object (subject of dispute);
• subjects (individuals, groups, organizations);
• conditions for the course of the conflict;
• the scale of the conflict (interpersonal, local, regional, global);
• strategies and tactics of behavior of the parties;
• outcomes of the conflict situation (consequences, results, their awareness).

Any real conflict is a complex dynamic process that includes the following main stages:

• subject situation- the emergence of objective causes of conflict
• conflict interaction- incident or developing conflict
• conflict resolution(Full or partial).

The conflict, whatever its nature, performs a number of tasks, among which the most important are:

• dialectical- serves to identify the causes of conflict interaction;
• constructive- the tension caused by the conflict can be directed towards achieving the goal;
• destructive- there is a personal, emotional coloring of the relationship, which interferes with the solution of problems. Conflict management can be considered in two aspects: internal and external. The first of these is to manage one's own behavior in a conflict interaction. The external aspect of conflict management suggests that the subject of management can be a leader (manager, leader, etc.)

Conflict management- this is a purposeful impact on its dynamics due to objective laws in the interests of the development or destruction of the social system to which this conflict is related.

In the scientific literature, various attitude towards conflicts. Conflict, as a phenomenon, is always undesirable, which should, if possible, be avoided and resolved immediately. This attitude is clearly seen in the works of authors belonging to the school of scientific management, the administrative school. The "human relations" writers also tended to think that conflicts were to be avoided. But if conflicts were present in organizations, they considered this as a sign of inefficient performance and poor management.

The modern point of view is that even in well-managed organizations, some conflicts are not only possible, but may even be desirable. In many cases, the conflict helps to bring out the diversity of points of view, provides additional information, helps to identify problems, and so on.

Thus, conflict can be functional and lead to an increase in the effectiveness of the organization. Or it can be dysfunctional and lead to decreased personal satisfaction, group collaboration, and organizational effectiveness. The role of conflict mainly depends on how effectively it is managed.

Types of conflicts

In modern literature, there are many classifications of conflicts on various grounds.

So A.G. Zdravomyslov gives a classification of the levels of the conflicting parties:

• Interindividual conflicts
• Intergroup conflicts and their types:
  • interest groups
  • ethnic groups
  • groups united by a common position;
• conflicts between associations
• intra and interinstitutional conflicts
• conflicts between state entities
• conflicts between cultures or types of cultures

R. Dahrendorf gives one of the broadest classifications of conflicts.

We will give this classification, indicating the types of conflicts in brackets:

• According to the sources of occurrence (conflicts of interest, values, identification).
• By social consequences (successful, unsuccessful, creative or constructive, destructive or destructive).
• By scale (local, regional, interstate, global, micro-, macro-, and mega-conflicts).
• According to the forms of struggle (peaceful and non-peaceful).
• According to the peculiarities of the conditions of origin (endogenous and exogenous).
• In relation to the subjects to the conflict (genuine, random, false, latent).
• According to the tactics used by the parties (battle, game, debate).

AV Dmitrov gives several classifications of social conflicts on various grounds. The author refers to conflicts by spheres: economic, political, labor, social security, education, education, etc.

Types of conflicts in relation to a separate subject:

• internal (personal conflicts);
• external (interpersonal, between an individual and a group, intergroup).

In psychology, it is also accepted to single out: motivational, cognitive, role-playing, etc. conflicts.

K. Levin refers motivational conflicts(few people are satisfied with their work, many do not believe in themselves, experience stress, overload at work) to a greater extent, to intrapersonal conflicts. L. Berkowitz, M. Deutsch, D. Myers describe motivational conflicts as group conflicts. Cognitive conflicts are also described in the literature both from the standpoint of intrapersonal and intergroup conflicts.

Role conflicts(the problem of choosing one of several possible and desirable options): intrapersonal, interpersonal and intergroup are most often manifested in the activity sphere. But most often in the psychological literature three types of conflicts are described: at the intrapersonal level, at the interpersonal and intergroup.

F. Lutens highlights 3 types of intrapersonal conflicts: role conflict; conflict caused by frustration, conflict of goals.

Intergroup conflict are, as a rule, conflicts of interests of groups in the industrial sphere.

Intergroup conflicts are generated most often by the struggle for limited resources or spheres of influence within an organization, which consists of many formal and informal groups with completely different interests. This opposition has different bases. For example, professional production (designers-manufacturers-financiers), social (workers-employees - management) or emotional-behavioral ("lazy" - "hard workers").

But the most numerous are interpersonal conflicts. In organizations, they manifest themselves in different ways, most often in the form of a management struggle for always limited resources. 75-80% of interpersonal conflicts are generated by a clash of material interests of individual subjects, although outwardly this manifests itself as a mismatch of characters, personal views or moral values. These are communication conflicts. Similar are the conflicts between the individual and the group. For example, a leader's clash with a united front of subordinates who do not like the boss's harsh disciplinary measures aimed at "tightening the screws."

Types of conflicts by nature:

• objective, related to real problems and shortcomings;
• subjective, due to different assessments of certain events and actions.

Types of conflicts by consequences:

• constructive, involving rational transformations;
• destructive, destroying the organization.

Conflict Management

To effectively manage conflicts, a manager needs to:

• determine the type of conflict
• his reasons
• its features
• and then apply the necessary resolution method for this type of conflict.

The main task of managing intrapersonal conflict can be:

• if these are conflicts of goals, then the main efforts of managers should be aimed at achieving compatibility of personal and organizational goals.
• if this is a conflict of roles, then their type should be taken into account (conflict of personality and expectations associated with the role; a conflict can also arise when there are different requirements for roles that a person must play at the same time).

Resolution methods intrapersonal conflicts there are many: compromise, withdrawal, sublimation, idealization, repression, reorientation, correction, etc. But the whole difficulty lies in the fact that it is very difficult for a person himself to ascertain, identify and manage an intrapersonal conflict. They are very well described in the scientific literature, in practice it is very difficult to resolve them on their own.

Interpersonal conflicts cover almost all spheres of human relations.

Management of interpersonal conflicts can be considered in two aspects - internal and influence.

The internal aspect is associated with some individual qualities of the personality itself and the skills of rational behavior in conflict.

The external aspect reflects the managerial activity on the part of the leader in relation to a specific conflict.

In the process of managing interpersonal conflicts, reasons, factors, mutual likes and dislikes should be taken into account at different stages of management (prevention, regulation, resolution). There are two main ways to resolve them: administrative or pedagogical.

Too often, conflicts that arise, for example, between a boss and a subordinate, an employee or a client, either escalate into a fight or a withdrawal. Neither option is an effective way to manage conflict. Psychologists and sociologists offer several more options for the behavior of a person in conflict. The two-dimensional model of personality behavior in conflict interaction, developed by K. Thomas and R. Killman, has become widespread in conflict. This model is based on the orientation of the participants in the conflict to their own interests and the interests of the opposite side. The participants in the conflict, analyzing their interests and the interests of the opponent, choose 5 strategies of behavior (fight, withdrawal, concessions, compromise, cooperation).

To resolve and maintain positive relationships, it is better to follow these tips:

• cool down
• Analyze the situation
• Explain to the other person what the problem is
• Leave the man "exit"

Group conflicts are less common in practice, but they are always larger and more severe in their consequences. It is important for a manager to know that the causes that arise between an individual and a group of conflicts are related to:

• with role expectations
• with the inadequacy of the internal setting to the status of the individual
• in violation of group norms

In order to effectively manage the “person-group” conflict, it is necessary to analyze these parameters, as well as to identify the form of its manifestation (criticism, group sanctions, etc.)

Conflicts of the “group-group” type are characterized by their diversity and their reasons for their appearance, as well as the distinctive forms of their manifestation and course (strikes, rallies, meetings, negotiations, etc.). More detailed methods of managing conflicts of this type are presented in the works of American sociologists and psychologists (D. Geldman, H. Arnold, St. Robbins, M. Dilton).

At different stages of managing intergroup conflicts (forecasting, preventing, regulating, resolving) there is a content of managerial actions, they will differ. We can observe such a difference, for example, when resolving a conflict:

The conflict of the “personality-group” type is resolved in two ways: the conflicting person admits his mistakes and corrects them; the conflicting personality, whose interests cannot be brought into a state of congruence with the interests of the group, leaves her. A conflict of the “group-group” type is resolved either by organizing a negotiation process, or by concluding an agreement in coordinating the interests and positions of the conflicting parties.

From a practical point of view, the problem of regulation of relations is formed as a task of changing behavioral stereotypes. According to G.M. Andreev, there should be a replacement of some - destructive - by others, more constructive.

The concept of social conflict- much more capacious than it might seem at first. Let's try to figure it out.

In Latin, conflict means "collision". In sociology conflict- this is the highest stage of contradictions that can arise between people or social groups, as a rule, this clash is based on opposing goals or interests of the parties to the conflict. There is even a separate science dealing with the study of this issue - conflictology. For social science, social conflict is another form of social interaction between people and groups.

Causes of social conflicts.

Causes of social conflicts obvious from the definition social conflict- disagreements between people or groups that pursue some socially significant interests, while the implementation of these interests is to the detriment of the interests of the opposite side. The peculiarity of these interests is that they are somehow connected with each other by some phenomenon, object, etc. When the husband wants to watch football, and the wife wants to watch a TV series, the TV is the connecting object, which is alone. Now, if there were two TV sets, then interests would not have a connecting element; the conflict would not have arisen, or it would have arisen, but for a different reason (the difference in the size of the screen, or a more comfortable chair in the bedroom than a chair in the kitchen).

German sociologist Georg Simmel in his theories of social conflict stated that conflicts in society are inevitable, because they are due to the biological nature of man and the social structure of society. He also suggested that frequent and short-lived social conflicts are beneficial to society, since, if positively resolved, they help members of society get rid of hostility towards each other and achieve understanding.

The structure of social conflict.

Structure of social conflict consists of three elements:

• the object of the conflict (that is, the specific cause of the conflict is the same TV mentioned earlier);
• subjects of the conflict (there may be two or more - for example, in our case, the third subject may be a daughter who wants to watch cartoons);
• incident (the reason for the start of the conflict, or rather its open stage - the husband switched to NTV + Football, and then it all started ...).

By the way, development of social conflict does not necessarily take place in an open stage: the wife may silently be offended and go for a walk, but the conflict will remain. In politics, this phenomenon is called a “frozen conflict”.

Types of social conflicts.

1. By the number of participants in the conflict:
   • intrapersonal (great interests for psychologists and psychoanalysts);
   • interpersonal (for example, husband and wife);
   • intergroup (between social groups: competing firms).
2. Direction of conflict:
   • horizontal (between people of the same level: worker against worker);
   • vertical (employee against superiors);
   • mixed (both those and others).
3. By functions of social conflict:
   • destructive (a fight on the street, a fierce argument);
   • constructive (fight in the ring according to the rules, intelligent discussion).
4. According to duration:
   • short-term;
   • protracted.
5. By permission:
   • peaceful or non-violent;
   • armed or violent.
6. Content of the problem:
   • economic;
   • political;
   • production;
   • household;
   • spiritual and moral, etc.
7. According to the nature of development:
   • spontaneous (unintentional);
   • intentional (planned in advance).
8. By volume:
   • global (World War II);
   • local (Chechen war);
   • regional (Israel and Palestine);
   • group (accountants against system administrators, sales managers against storekeepers);
   • personal (household, family).

Resolution of social conflicts.

The social policy of the state is in charge of resolving and preventing social conflicts. Of course, it is impossible to prevent all conflicts (two TVs per family!), but to anticipate and prevent global, local and regional conflicts is a paramount task.

Ways to resolve socialsconflicts:

1. Avoidance of conflict. Physical or psychological withdrawal from conflict. The disadvantage of this method is that the cause remains and the conflict is “frozen”.
2. Negotiation.
3. Use of intermediaries. Here everything depends on the experience of the intermediary.
4. Postponement. Temporary surrender of positions for the accumulation of forces (methods, arguments, etc.).
5. Arbitration, litigation, third party resolution.

Conditions necessary for successful conflict resolution:

• determine the cause of the conflict;
• determine the goals and interests of the conflicting parties;
• the parties to the conflict must be willing to overcome differences and resolve the conflict;
• identify ways to overcome the conflict.

As you can see, the social conflict has many faces: it is the mutual exchange of "courtesies" between the fans of "Spartak" and "CSKA", and family disputes, and the war in the Donbass, and events in Syria, and the dispute between the boss and the subordinate, etc., and etc. Having studied the concept of social conflict and earlier the concept of the nation, in the future we will consider the most dangerous type of conflict -

Social conflicts in modern society are inevitable. Conflicts based on objectively arising contradictions, if they are resolved, contribute, as a rule, to social progress. At the same time, objective contradictions that serve as a source of conflict situations can be divided into two main types:

• - contradictions due to the socio-economic and material situation of the members of this society;
• - political contradictions, caused, first of all, by the rejection of the policy of the authorities.

Social conflicts, as a rule, receive a peculiar manifestation in modern Russian reality. Changes in social relations today are accompanied by an expansion of the sphere of manifestation of this type of conflict. They involve not only large social groups, but also entire territories, both nationally homogeneous and inhabited by various ethnic communities. This is due to the deep economic and social transformations of Russian society that have taken place since the end of the 20th century.

Conflicts in Russia, although they arise in various spheres of the life of society (economic, political, national, etc.), but in the broad sense of the word they refer to social conflicts, since the confrontation is between social communities, groups, layers pursuing their own goals and interests.

In modern Russia, the following can be distinguished types of conflicts.

• 1. Conflicts between the structural elements of society, as well as within the boundaries of each of them. These are the following elements:
  • - power (legislative, executive, judicial);
  • - entrepreneurship (collective, private, with the participation of foreign capital, speculative, etc.);
  • - manufacturers;
  • - various groups of intellectuals, employees, workers, farmers, students, labor veterans, etc.
• 2. Conflicts in sphere of power:
  • - between the main branches of power in the country as a whole and its individual branches in the subjects of the federation (legislative, executive and judicial, federal and regional, regional and municipal);
  • - between the State Duma and the Federation Council, as well as within these bodies (for example, between political factions in the State Duma);
  • – between parties with different ideological and political orientations (KPRF, United Russia, LDPR, etc.);
  • - between different links of the administrative apparatus (ie in the sphere of executive authorities).
• 3. Interethnic and interethnic conflicts. They are based on the struggle for the rights and interests of ethnic and national groups. Most often, these conflicts are associated with status and territorial claims. The sovereignty of a people or an ethnic group is the dominant factor. Such conflicts are often deliberately provoked by various nationalist, separatist and fanatical religious forces.

Expert opinion

The conflict in interethnic and interethnic relations will not completely disappear even if there are positive changes in the economy and political sphere of Russia, as it has its own logic of origin and history of development. Therefore, the problem of taking into account and realizing the interests of various ethnic and national groups is of great importance in modern Russian society.

4. innovative conflicts. At the heart of innovation conflicts lie the contradictions associated with the introduction of information technology, automation of production and organization of labor in enterprises, institutions, and organizations. The reasons for the contradictions underlying such conflicts lie in the fact that any innovations are accompanied by certain difficulties (this may be the loss of a job due to staff reduction, the need to undergo retraining, fear of not being able to cope with new responsibilities, a change of residence, etc. ), but not every participant in innovation processes is ready for this.

TO forms manifestations of social conflict in the scientific literature include various kinds of mass actions:

• - presentation of demands to the authorities by dissatisfied social groups;
• - use of public opinion in support of their demands or alternative programs;
• - direct mass protests.

Mass protest can be expressed in the following main forms.

Demonstration- a mass procession to express socio-political sentiments, in defense of any goals or in protest.

Picketing- a form of public expression of opinions carried out without movement and use of sound-amplifying technical means by placing visual agitation devices near the picketed object.

Rally - a mass meeting to discuss topical issues of current life, to express solidarity or protest. It is usually held in the open air and, as a rule, is available both for like-minded people, as well as for any willing or interested persons. The rally ends with the adoption of a resolution (for example, at rallies in support of Crimea in Russian cities - resolutions with an expression of solidarity, on Bolotnaya Square in Moscow - resolutions protest).

Civil Disobedience Company- political action, expressed in the intentional violation of the law in order to initiate changes in legislation or government policy.

Note!

The concept of civil disobedience was formulated by the American philosopher J. Rawls in his book The Theory of Justice (1971). According to J. Rawls, civil disobedience is a public, non-violent, conscious and yet political act in which the law is violated in order to change the law or public policy.

Strike- collective coordinated termination of work in an organization or enterprise in order to obtain concessions from the employer and provide social guarantees.

In modern Russia, it is important to make all social conflicts, primarily shadow, implicit and latent ones, public, as open as possible. This will make it possible to put them under control and respond in a timely manner to the processes taking place during the confrontation. The media, public organizations and other institutions of civil society can play a big role here.

Conflict is understood as an attempt to achieve a reward by subjugating, imposing one's will, removing or even destroying an opponent seeking to achieve the same reward.

Conflicts between individuals are most often based on emotions and personal animosity, while intergroup conflict is usually impersonal, although outbreaks of personal animosity are also possible.

The emerging conflict process is difficult to stop. This is because the conflict is cumulative nature, i.e. every aggressive action leads to a response or retribution, and more powerful than the original. The conflict is escalating and involves more and more people.

The conflict begins with the structure of needs, the set of which is specific to each individual and social group.

All human behavior can be simplified as a series of elementary acts, each of which begins with an imbalance in connection with an emerging need and the appearance of a goal that is significant for the individual, and ends with the restoration of balance and achievement of the goal (consummation).

Meeting with an insurmountable difficulty in satisfying a need can be classified as frustration. It is usually associated with tension, displeasure, turning into irritation and anger.

The reaction to frustration can develop in two directions - it can be either retreat, or aggression.

Thus, for the emergence of social conflict, it is necessary, firstly, that the cause of frustration be other people's behavior and, secondly, in order to have a response to an aggressive social action, interaction.

Conflicts are: Personal conflict. This zone includes conflicts occurring within the personality, at the level of individual consciousness. Such conflicts may be associated, for example, with excessive dependence or role tension. This is a purely psychological conflict, but it can be a catalyst for the emergence of group tension if the individual seeks the cause of his internal conflict among the members of the group. interpersonal conflict. This zone includes disagreements between two or more members of one group or several groups. In this conflict, individuals stand "face to face", like two boxers, and individuals who do not form groups also join. Intergroup conflict. A certain number of individuals forming a group (that is, a social community capable of joint coordinated action) come into conflict with another group that does not include individuals from the first group. This is the most common type of conflict, because individuals, starting to influence others, usually try to attract supporters to themselves, to form a group that facilitates actions in the conflict. Ownership conflict occurs due to the dual belonging of individuals, for example, when they form a group within another, larger group, or when an individual enters simultaneously into two competitive groups pursuing the same goal. Conflict with the external environment. The individuals that make up the group are under pressure from outside (primarily from cultural, administrative and economic norms and regulations). Often they come into conflict with the institutions that support these norms and regulations.

Stages of conflict:

1. Pre-conflict stage. No social conflict arises instantly. Emotional stress, irritation and anger usually accumulate over time, so the pre-conflict stage sometimes drags on so much that the root cause of the conflict is forgotten.

A characteristic feature of every conflict at the time of its inception is the presence of an object, the possession of which (or the achievement of which) is associated with the frustration of the needs of two subjects.

2. Direct conflict . This stage is characterized primarily by the presence of an incident, i.e. social actions aimed at changing the behavior of rivals. This is an active, active part of the conflict. Thus, the entire conflict consists of a conflict situation that is formed at the pre-conflict stage, and an incident.

3. Conflict resolution . An external sign of conflict resolution may be the end of the incident. It is a completion, not a temporary cessation. This means that conflict interaction between the conflicting parties is terminated. Elimination, termination of the incident is a necessary but not sufficient condition for resolving the conflict. Often, having stopped active conflict interaction, people continue to experience a frustrating state, to look for its cause. And then the conflict that was extinguished flares up again.

The resolution of social conflict is possible only when the conflict situation changes. This change can take many forms. But the most effective change in the conflict situation, which allows to extinguish the conflict, is considered to be the elimination of the cause of the conflict.

It is also possible to resolve social conflict by changing requirements of one of the parties: the opponent makes concessions and changes the goals of his behavior in the conflict.

All conflicts have four basic parameters: the causes of the conflict, the severity of the conflict, the duration of the conflict and the consequences of the conflict.

Conflicts are an integral part of a person's life in society and his interaction with other people. Conflicts arise everywhere and can lie in wait for each of us anywhere: at work, in the office, at school or college, in a store or public transport, and even at home. The ability to recognize conflict situations and neutralize them is a very important skill for any person. In the following lessons of the presented training on conflictology, we, of course, will talk in detail about the causes of conflicts and the analysis of their strategies, as well as discuss in detail the issues of conflict management, conflict prevention and prevention. However, before embarking on these more serious topics, we should understand what constitutes a conflict in general, what types of conflicts exist and how they are characterized.

What is conflict?

The term "conflict" comes from the Latin word "conflictus", meaning "collided". Usually, when talking about conflict, they talk about the most acute way of resolving contradictions in views, goals, interests that arise during the interaction of people with each other. As a process, the conflict consists in the opposition of the participants in this social interaction to each other, and is accompanied by negative emotions, which often go beyond the generally accepted norms and standards. In conflict understand the lack of agreement between several parties (it can be individuals or groups of people). The science that studies conflicts is called conflictology.

Attitude to the concept of "conflict"

In the vast majority of cases, it is believed that the conflict is an extremely negative phenomenon, causing misunderstanding, resentment, hostility or threats, in other words, something that you should try to avoid by all means. Also, representatives of earlier schools argued that conflict is a sign of poor management of the organization and an indicator of its inefficiency. But, despite this, many modern management specialists are increasingly inclined to believe that some types of conflict not only can occur, but are desirable even in the most effective organizations, where employee relationships deserve the best ratings. The only thing that is needed here is to learn how to manage conflict.

Conflict, like any social phenomenon, has not only its own definition, but also its own signs. And this issue is no less important and is subject to separate consideration.

Signs of Conflict

First sign of conflict - BIPOLARITY

Bipolarity, also called opposition, is both confrontation and interconnectedness, which contains the internal potential of the existing contradiction. However, bipolarity by itself does not yet speak of a struggle or a clash.

The second sign of conflict - ACTIVITY

Activity here is understood as resistance and struggle. For the emergence of activity, an impulse is needed, which is set by the participant (subject) of the conflict by awareness of the conflict situation itself.

The third sign of conflict - SUBJECTS OF THE CONFLICT

The subject of the conflict is an active party capable of creating conflict situations, as well as influencing the process of the conflict, which, in turn, depends on his interests. Traditionally, the subjects of the conflict are distinguished by a peculiar type of thinking called conflict. Contradiction can be a source of conflict situations only for those people who have conflict thinking.

Types of conflicts

Classification of conflicts according to the impact on the activities of a group or organization

According to the impact on the activities of a group or organization, conflicts can be constructive and destructive.

Constructive (functional) conflicts- these are conflicts that lead to the adoption of informed decisions and contribute to the development of relations between the subjects of the conflict. As a rule, the following several functional consequences of conflicts are distinguished:

• The conflict is resolved in a way that suits all parties to the conflict; each party feels involved in resolving the problem;
• A joint decision is implemented as quickly and easily as possible;
• The parties involved in the conflict master the skill of effective cooperation during the solution of problematic issues;
• If a conflict arose between subordinates and leaders, then the practice of resolving the conflict allows you to destroy the “submission syndrome”, when a person occupying a lower position has a fear of expressing his point of view if it differs from that of people with a higher status;
• Relationships between people are getting better;
• The parties to the conflict no longer view disagreements as something negative and leading to negative consequences.

EXAMPLE: A perfect example of a constructive conflict is a common work situation: a leader and a subordinate cannot agree on any issue regarding their joint activities. After a conversation and expression by each participant of his opinion, a compromise is found, and the leader and the subordinate find a common language, and their relationship becomes positive.

Destructive (dysfunctional) conflicts - these are conflicts that impede the adoption of competent decisions and effective interaction between the subjects of the conflict. Dysfunctional consequences of conflicts are the following:

• Competitive, rival relations between people;
• Lack of desire for positive relationships and cooperation;
• Perception of the opponent as an enemy, his position - exclusively as incorrect, and his own - exclusively as correct;
• The desire to reduce and even completely stop any interaction with the opponent's side;
• The belief that "winning" a conflict is far more important than finding a common solution;
• Bad mood, negative emotions, feeling of dissatisfaction.

EXAMPLE: Examples of non-constructive conflict include war, any manifestation of physical violence, family quarrels, etc.

Classification of conflicts by content

Realistic conflicts - these are conflicts that are caused by dissatisfaction with the specific requirements of the participants or unfair, according to the opinion of one of the parties, the distribution of certain advantages between the participants. As a rule, such conflicts are aimed at achieving a specific result.

EXAMPLE: conflicts with the authorities of the former Nord-Ost hostages and relatives of the victims due to the failure of the state to comply with certain requirements.

Unrealistic conflicts - these are conflicts, the purpose of which is the specific expression of negative emotions, hostility or resentment, in other words, the conflict here is the main goal.

EXAMPLE: murder by one person of another due to the fact that the first believes that the second is guilty of his problems and troubles; terrorist acts without expressing specific requirements.

Classification of conflicts by the nature of the participants

By the nature of the participants, conflicts are divided into intrapersonal, interpersonal, conflicts between the individual and the group, and intergroup conflicts.

Intrapersonal conflict - arises when there is no harmony between various psychological factors in the inner world of a person, for example, his feelings, values, motives, needs, etc. For example, intrapersonal conflict associated with human activity can be expressed in various forms. But in most cases, this is a form of role conflict - when different roles of a person require him to fulfill different requirements.

EXAMPLE: A person who is an exemplary family man needs to be at home in the evenings, but his position as a leader obliges him to often stay at work in the evenings. The intrapersonal conflict here is due to the mismatch of personal needs and the requirements of his activity.

Interpersonal conflict - is the most common type of conflict. In different situations, it can appear in different ways. But the reasons for such a conflict can be not only differences in people's behavior, their manners, attitudes, opinions or characters, which are subjective reasons, but also objective reasons, moreover, they are the basis of interpersonal conflicts most often.

EXAMPLE: One of the most common causes of interpersonal conflicts is the scarcity of any resources, such as labor, production space, equipment, money, and all sorts of vital benefits. For example, one person believes that it is he who needs the most resources, and not someone else, while this other person thinks the same way.

Conflict between individual and group the presented conflict appears in those cases when one of the members of a group or organization violates the norms of behavior established in it or the laws of communication adopted in informal groups.

EXAMPLE: The conflict between the individual and the group is clearly illustrated by the example of the conflict between subordinates and a leader who adheres to an authoritarian leadership style; similar conflicts can also be observed in youth parties, where one of the members of the party suddenly behaved not according to the laws of the “flock”.

Intergroup conflict - it is a conflict that occurs between formal and/or informal groups that are part of a society or organization. Interestingly, during the period of intergroup conflict, people can unite in various close-knit communities. However, this cohesion often disappears immediately after the desired result is achieved.

EXAMPLE: An intergroup conflict may arise between employees of any division of the organization and its administration, for example, due to a sudden reduction in staff; a similar situation is often observed between opposition political parties or religious denominations.

Classification of conflicts according to the specifics of the opposite sides and the conditions for the development of the conflict

According to the specifics of opposite sides and conditions of development, conflicts can be internal, external and antagonistic.

Internal conflicts - characterized by the interaction of two or more opposing subjects within a community or group of people.

EXAMPLE: An excellent example of internal conflict is intra-class struggle, such as the struggle for leadership.

External conflicts - represent the interaction of opposites that relate to different objects (groups, classes, etc.).

EXAMPLE: As an example of an external conflict, one can name the confrontation between a person and natural elements or the struggle of an organism with the external environment.

Antagonistic conflicts - one of the most acute conflicts, because are interactions between social groups that are irreconcilably opposed to each other. It is unique that the very concept of "antagonism" is very common in medicine and biology - antagonism of teeth, muscles, microbes, drugs, poisons, etc. can occur. In addition, in mathematical science, antagonism is seen as the opposite of interests. In its pure form, antagonism is presented in social processes.

EXAMPLE: A striking example of an antagonistic conflict is war, market competition, revolution, sports competition, etc.

In addition to all of the above, a correct understanding and interpretation of conflicts, as well as their functions, features, essence and consequences is impossible without typology, i.e. without highlighting the basic types of conflicts on the basis of identifying their similarities and differences and ways to identify them with a commonality of the main differences and features.

In order to make it possible to choose an adequate method of influencing and managing a conflict (which you will learn about in our next lessons), it is necessary to typify conflicts according to their main features: methods of solution, areas of manifestation, direction of influence, severity, number of participants and violated needs.

It is on the basis of typology that both types and varieties of conflicts are determined. The type of conflict as a variation of conflict interaction is distinguished according to certain criteria.

Types of conflicts by way of resolution

According to the method of resolution, conflicts are divided into violent and non-violent.

Violent (antagonistic) conflicts - are such ways of resolving contradictions in which the destruction of the structures of all subjects of the conflict occurs or the refusal of all subjects, except for one, to participate in the conflict. As a result, the subject that remains wins.

EXAMPLE: An excellent example of a violent conflict is the election of authorities, a tough discussion, debate, and so on.

Non-violent (compromise conflicts) - these are conflicts that allow several options for resolving the situation by mutually changing the goals of the subjects of the conflict, the conditions of interaction, terms, etc.

EXAMPLE: As an example of a compromise conflict, the following situation can be mentioned: a supplier who has pledged to supply raw materials for production does not fulfill his obligations on time. In this case, the manufacturer has the right to require the supplier to comply with the agreed schedule, but the delivery dates could change for some good reason. The mutual interest of both parties allows them to negotiate, change the original schedule and find a compromise solution.

The next classification, which we will consider, is determined by the spheres of manifestation of conflicts. The spheres, in turn, can be very diverse - these are politics, and people's beliefs, and social relations, and the economy, and much more. Let's talk about the most common of them.

Types of conflicts by spheres of manifestation

Political conflicts - are clashes on the basis of the struggle for power and the distribution of power.

EXAMPLE: An example of a political conflict is a confrontation between two or more political parties.

Social conflict - is a contradiction in the system of human relationships. These contradictions are distinguished by the strengthening of the interests of opposing subjects, as well as the tendencies of individuals and social groups. Social conflicts include both purely social and social-labor and labor conflicts.

EXAMPLE: Examples of social conflicts are pickets, strikes, rallies, wars.

Economic conflicts - this group of conflicts includes those conflicts, the basis of which are contradictions in the sphere of economic interests of individuals and social groups.

EXAMPLE: An economic conflict can be called a struggle for the distribution of property, a sphere of economic influence, social benefits or resources.

Organizational conflicts - they can be considered as a consequence of hierarchical relations and regulation of human activity, as well as the use of the principle of distribution of people's relations.

EXAMPLE: A striking example of an organizational conflict is the application of job descriptions, the assignment of certain duties and rights to an employee, the introduction of nominal management structures, the existence of certain provisions for the assessment and remuneration of employees, as well as their bonuses, etc.

Types of conflicts by direction of impact

According to the direction of influence, conflicts are distinguished between vertical and horizontal. Their characteristic feature is the distribution of the volume of power that is at the disposal of the subjects of the conflict at the time of the conflict situation.

Vertical conflicts - these are conflicts in which the amount of available power decreases along the vertical axis from top to bottom, thereby determining different starting conditions for the subjects of the conflict.

EXAMPLE: A vertical conflict can be called a conflict between a boss and a subordinate, a teacher and a student, a small enterprise and a higher organization, etc.

Horizontal conflicts - these are conflicts in the course of which subjects interact that have an equivalent power or a hierarchical level.

EXAMPLE: G a horizontal conflict can be a conflict between managers occupying equal positions, employees of the same level, consumers and suppliers, etc.

Types of conflicts according to the severity of conflict confrontation

According to the degree of conflict confrontation, conflicts can be hidden and open.

Hidden conflicts - conflicts in which there are no external aggressive actions between the subjects of the conflict, but there are indirect ones, i.e. indirect ways of influencing subjects on each other. Hidden conflicts are possible only when one of the subjects of conflict interaction either fears the other, or does not have enough resources for open confrontation.

EXAMPLE: An example of a hidden conflict can be an official scientific controversy between teachers, behind which the real essence of the conflict is hidden - the struggle for an authoritative social status, for example, for some position at a university.

Open conflicts - differ in that they contain a clear clash of conflicting subjects, i.e. disputes, quarrels, squabbles, etc. The interaction of the participants in the conflict is regulated in this case by the norms corresponding to the position of the participants and the situation.

EXAMPLE: An example of an open conflict can safely be called a war, when two or more parties openly express their demands and use open methods to achieve their goals; a quarrel of people that arose for any reason and does not have hidden motives, etc.

It is important to distinguish between conflicts and on the basis of violated needs.

Types of conflicts depending on violated needs

Depending on the violated needs, conflicts of interest and cognitive conflicts are distinguished.

Conflicts of interest - represent a confrontation based on a clash of interests of the subjects of the conflict, which can be individuals, groups of people, organizations, etc.

EXAMPLE: P Examples of conflicts of interest can be found even in everyday life - two children cannot share a toy they like; husband and wife, having one TV for two, want to watch different TV programs at the same time, etc.

Cognitive conflicts - these are conflicts of knowledge, points of view, views. As a rule, the goal of each subject of a cognitive conflict is to convince the opposite side that it is his position, opinion or point of view that is correct.

EXAMPLE: Examples of cognitive conflict can also be found quite often - these are discussions of various problems, disputes, discussions, disputes, during which participants express different points of view and give all kinds of arguments to prove their case.

Summing up the conversation about the types and types of conflicts, it should be noted that the distribution of conflicts by type is actually very arbitrary due to the fact that there is no clearly defined boundary between them, and in practice, i.e. in real life, various complex types of conflicts can arise, some conflicts can transform into others, and so on.

What else do you need to know about conflicts?

The history of mankind, its morality, culture, intellect is an ongoing struggle of ideas, aspirations, competition of forces and interests, rivalry. Throughout his life, every person systematically encounters conflicts of all kinds. When a person wants to achieve something, the goal can be difficult to achieve. When he experiences failure, he may blame the people around him for the fact that it was because of them that he could not get what he wanted. Those around him, in turn, no matter whether they are relatives, classmates, friends or work colleagues, may believe that he himself is to blame for his problems and failures. The form can be completely different, but almost always it can lead to misunderstanding, which can develop into discontent and even confrontation, thereby creating tension and causing a conflict situation.

Every person has conflicts in life. It is common for people to be dissatisfied with something, to perceive something “with hostility”, not to agree with everything. And all this is natural, because such is the nature of man. However, these and other similar internal properties can become harmful if a person is not able to resolve his own conflict with the people around him; if he is not able to give it a constructive form; if he cannot adhere to adequate principles in his contradictions.

It is quite reasonable to conclude that conflicts are inevitable. But, in reality, things are somewhat different. And not all conflict situations that arise between people from time to time end in conflict.

Conflict should not be treated as something dangerous and negative if it is an incentive for personal development, pushes a person to work on himself, tempers morally and psychologically, and promotes unity with other people. But you should try to avoid those conflicts that have a destructive potential, destroy relationships, create a state of psychological discomfort, and increase a person’s isolation. It is very important for the poem to be able to recognize any prerequisites for conflicts and be able to prevent the occurrence of unwanted conflict situations.

To be able to recognize and prevent conflicts means to own a culture of communication, to be able to control oneself, to show respect for the personality of other people, to apply various methods of influencing them. Nothing can contribute to the elimination of various kinds of misunderstandings to such a strong extent as competent, civilized communication, which includes knowledge of elementary etiquette skills and the ability to master them, as well as the ability to establish and maintain effective contact, develop your own style of communication and interaction with others. people.

If you find yourself in a difficult, controversial situation, the most important thing is to control your behavior and behave socially competently. If the conflict situation is based on experiences and emotions, then the unpleasant sensations from it can remain for a very, very long time. For this reason, you need to learn to manage your emotional states, control your behavior and reactions. You should always be tuned in to the stability and balance of your nervous system.

EXERCISE: As one of the most effective methods of working with your psyche, you can bring self-tuning to a state of calm. It is not difficult to implement it: sit in a comfortable chair, relax, close your eyes and try not to think about anything for a while. Then, clearly and slowly say a few phrases to yourself that set you up for self-control, endurance, a state of calm. Strive to feel how balance seizes you, you become more cheerful, feel a surge of strength and good mood; You feel great physically, mentally and psychologically. Regular performance of this exercise will allow you to become more resistant to emotional stress of any intensity.

Recall that the presented lesson is more theoretical than practical, because. our task was to introduce you to what a conflict is in general and to present a classification of conflicts. From the following lessons of our training on conflict resolution, you can learn not only a lot of theoretical information, but also learn a lot of practical advice that you can immediately put into practice.

Test your knowledge

If you want to test your knowledge on the topic of this lesson, you can take a short test consisting of several questions. Only 1 option can be correct for each question. After you select one of the options, the system automatically moves on to the next question. The points you receive are affected by the correctness of your answers and the time spent on passing. Please note that the questions are different each time, and the options are shuffled.