Skills in Dispute Management

Skills in Dispute Management
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Introduction
Conflict management can be a challenging process. However, such management depends on the type of conflict and key underlying factors. For instance, a conflict in the workplace may be way easier to solve than a conflict involving two nations. Additionally, conflicts that are caused by endemic issues are usually complicated and may take a long time to solve (Avruch 2019). For instance, if a conflict is caused by historical injustice occurring over decades, it might take a long time to effectively deal with. One of the key aspects of conflicts is culture. There are several dimensions of culture that affect the management of conflicts.
This paper will focus on various aspects of culture and how they affect the management of a conflict. Particularly, the aspects of culture that will be addressed include national culture, education culture, professional culture, race culture, gender culture, religious culture, and technological culture. These aspects of culture influence the management of a conflict both positively and negatively. In addition, the paper will focus on some key skills that are needed for the effective conduct of cross-cultural communications. In the modern world, cross-cultural communications are inevitable. Consequently, it is important for negotiators to have the skills necessary to make these negotiations effective.
National Culture
National culture plays a pivotal role in the approaches taken to manage a conflict. There are several elements of national culture that affect the management of a conflict. The first element is that of power distance. The concept of power distance relates to the extent of inequality that is embedded between people in a society (Avruch 2019). In most modern nations, for instance, there is a huge gap between the rich and the poor. Capitalistic tendencies have created a situation where there are few extremely wealthy individuals and a majority of people who are poor (Abbasi Gul and Senin 2018). This power gap is likely to influence the existence as well as the management of conflicts. Evidence has shown where there is a huge power distance, it is generally tougher to manage a conflict (Avruch 2019). The opposite has been found to be true, that is, if the power distance is small, solving most conflicts is done effectively.
The second element of national culture that influences conflict management is individualism vs. collectivism. There are countries whose national culture promote the concept of people thinking of themselves as individuals (individualism), while there are other that encourage people to understand themselves as being part of a group (collectivism). Where collectivism is part of the national culture, team spirit is encouraged, and management of conflicts is more swift/ effective (Avruch 2019). On the other hand, individualism discourages prompt/effective management of conflicts.
The third element of national culture is masculinity vs. femininity. This element refers to the extent to which the country promotes the traditional masculinity orientation towards work (Abbasi Gul and Senin 2018). Generally, countries that maintain a balance between these two factors are more likely to manage conflicts swiftly and effectively. On the other hand, if a country promotes extremes of either of these two factors, then there is likely to be a proliferation of conflicts and a more challenging time managing them (Avruch 2019). The above-mentioned points are at a macro level of conflict resolution and management. Despite being macro in nature, they considerably affect the management of conflict either positively or negatively. It is also worth noting that there are other elements of national culture that affect the management of conflict besides the ones highlighted above (Abbasi Gul and Senin 2018). To further understand the role of national culture in the management of conflict, the following paragraph will focus on some examples.
Pakistan's national culture is collective in nature. People from Pakistan appreciate understanding themselves as groups instead of individuals. Consequently, management of conflicts, especially when it comes to businesses, is usually swift and effective (Avruch 2019). There are also other aspects of Pakistan's national culture that influence conflict management. One other is large power distance which exacerbated conflicts and derails their management in some arenas. The second country to focus on is the United States. Some elements of American national culture include being individualistic, valuing freedom, and being competitive. The aspect of valuing personal freedoms and being incredibly future oriented has helped America be great at resolving conflicts that relate to human rights (Avruch 2019). The above examples highlight two key examples of how national culture affects conflict management. It is worth noting that there are numerous aspects of national culture, and they affect conflict management at different levels.
Education and Professional Culture
Education culture plays a central in affecting the management of conflicts. Education culture involves the philosophical underpinnings that guide the education process. The framework in which the education process takes place may vary significantly from country to country or region to region. This section will highlight some aspects of educational culture and how they affect the management of a conflict.
Before delving into the aspects of education culture, it is worth noting that education in and of itself is likely to encourage effective management of conflicts. Education expands the mind to the dimensions of liberalism and helps individuals get rid of ignorance. An educated person is less likely to engage in a prolonged conflict compared to a person who is not educated. Studies show that regional conflicts may persist for years where affected persons have low levels of education. On the other hand, in regions where there are elites, disputes are likely to be resolved faster since they understand that the ramifications of prolonged conflict can only be negative.
One of the dimensions of educational culture is leadership. In most universities today, a culture of teaching students leadership skills has gained traction. Over time, scholars have realized that people with good leadership skills are better at solving conflicts than those who do not. The skills instilled in leadership training include emotional intelligence and effective conflict-resolution mechanisms. Evidence shows that knowledge has the potential to shape attitudes. When attitudes are shaped, behavior change results. In this context, the knowledge of leadership and the acquisition of leadership skills enables one to be better at managing conflicts. Due to this culture, we are likely to see a situation where conflicts are managed more effectively both in contemporary society and in the future.
The aspect of critical thinking is yet another aspect of an educational culture that is quite common in contemporary schools. The adoption of this philosophical thinking equips students with the skills needed to be creative and innovative. Critical thinking also challenges people to identify inconsistencies in their thoughts and appreciate that they might not always be right. One of the key reasons why conflicts persist is due to the failure of both parties to concede or come to a common conclusion. With the increased adoption of the critical thinking culture in modern schools, such persistence is likely to be a thing of the past. Therefore, the adoption of critical thinking philosophy positively affects conflict resolution.
Due to globalization and intercultural relations that are prevalent in the modern world, schools have also adopted a model of equipping students with cultural competence skills. Evidence has shown that people who are culturally competent are likely to work seamlessly with people from diverse cultures. Additionally, cultural competence plays a key role in avoiding potential cultural conflicts. Additionally, where such conflicts arise, they will likely be solved swiftly and amicably. Consequently, the modern education culture of equipping students with cultural competence skills plays a key role in enabling effective conflict management.
Professionalism and education are intertwined. In most cases, professionalism results from the accumulation of education and skills. The culture of professionalism plays a key role in influencing the effective management of conflicts. Take, for instance, professionalism in organizations. An organization that is run by professionals is likely to have a faster conflict resolution mechanism. In most cases, professionals are interested in advancing their professional interests in organizations. As a consequence, their professional skills do not only help in the effective management of conflicts but ensure that potential conflicts are kept at a minimum. Take an example of a healthcare organization. There are professional roles for a doctor, a nurse, a pharmacist, and a nutritionist. Consequently, due to the distinct roles, it is unlikely that these professionals will crash. Moreover, due to the professional nature of their jobs, if a conflict occurs, they are likely to solve it swiftly and amicably. The aim of all these professionals is to ensure the maximization of positive health outcomes in patients. This unifying factor further helps in the effective resolution of conflicts.
Race Culture
The concept of race has had a rather negative history. Race denotes the differences that exist in the skin tone/ color of people from different regions. Skin color, in and of itself, does not affect the cognitive or other abilities of an individual. However, due to historical practices and injustices, racism is widespread in some regions and quite low in others. Race culture significantly affects the management of conflicts. There are several ways in which this culture influences the management of conflict.
First, racism is a form of discrimination. Consequently, racism creates conflicts. Additionally, evidence has shown that racism exacerbates conflicts occurring in places where racism is prevalent. Consequently, racism promotes the proliferation of conflicts and poor management/ resolution of conflicts. Secondly, there are other facets of racism that increase conflicts. Take, for example, the inequality that comes as a result of racism. One such example is economic inequality. The economic inequalities resulting from racism further intensify the bad blood between conflicting races and makes the resolution of conflicts harder. The following is an example of how racism might affect conflicts.
Racism is endemic in the United States. The historical injustices perpetrated during the slave trade laid a foundation upon which racism was built. Despite many years passing after the abolition of the slave trade, the concept of racism still persists in modern-day America. An excellent example to illustrate this is the recent widespread campaigns against police brutality. The conflict between the white and the black has been historically manifested in police brutality directed at black Americans. The brutality which was common in the times of Martin Luther King Junior infiltrates into modern America. The historical cause of conflict is, therefore, endemic and makes the conflict very hard to solve/ manage. Numerous efforts have been carried out to try and resolve the racial conflicts in America. However, as long as minority groups remain disadvantaged in almost all aspects of life, it might take a long time before the conflict is finally resolved.
In communities where racial discrimination is low or non-existent, the resolution of conflicts is relatively more effective. The best-case scenario here would be Canada. Despite being multiracial and diverse, Canada has low cases of racism. Consequently, there are...