Lecture 12

Conflicts and cultural differences

The nature of conflict

Definition: A conflict appears when people with differing needs or

goals are prevented or perceive that they are being prevented by
others in achieving these needs or goals
Realistic group conflict theory: source of inter-group conflict is struggle
over (limited) structural resources, not personal characteristics
Social identity theory: conflict between groups is seen to be the result
of perceived identities

Conflict and (cultural) groups

Ting-Toomey (1999):
(cross-cultural) conflict involves:
(cultural) groups protecting their own self-image
intercultural perceptions coloured by ethnocentrism and
stereotypes
not just the situation but also communicative behaviours, which are
profoundly shaped by the way individuals in a culture
conceptualize the sense of self

Concept of self-construal
How people perceive themselves
Ting-Toomey distinguishes between
Those with an independent sense of self welcome communication in
the conflict process, if both parties are open: this may bring tangible,
creative solutions
Those with an interdependent sense of self see conflict as negative
and unproductive, particularly if the other party is assertive/not
properly address relational feelings
Independent self-concepts found more often in individualist cultures;
interdependent self-concepts more prevalent in collectivistic cultures

A model of conflict styles

A persons conflict style: patterned responses or clusters of behavior

that people use in conflict
Thomas and Kilmann model (1974) based on two factors in a persons
conflict style:
assertiveness: the degree to which a person is concerned with his
or her own interests
cooperativeness: the degree to which a person is concerned with
the interests of others

Conflict handling modes

H
I
G
H

Collaborating
Competing

Compromising
Concern for
self
Assertiveness

Avoiding

Accommodating

L
O
W
LOW

HIGH
Concern for other
Co-operativeness

Two-dimensional taxonomy of conflict handling modes

Source: Thomas and Kilman (1974), p. 11 (adapted)

A model for intercultural conflict management :

Why the need?

Can such a dual concern model handle the increasing complexity of

modern-day disputes?

Relationship
Leung, K. et al. (2002) propose the introduction of harmony into the
model: concerns itself with the relationship between the self and the
other
Harmony: focus on using a conflict-free relationship to achieve a goal
Reason to include this aspect is made in the light of their investigation
into conflict avoidance which is:
a feature common in East Asia, and one associated with collectivistic
cultures
can cause equal harm in a more subtle manner: replacing genuine
problem-solving with superficial harmony

Emotions
Kumar (2004) uses the individualist/collectivist cultural dimension. He
distinguishes between:
Ego-focused emotions such as anger, pride and guilt, linked to the
non-fulfilment of individual goals
Other-focused emotions such as shame, anxiety and fear, related
to the (in-)ability to promote the interdependent self
Individualist, ego-focused emotions can cause individuals to try harder
to reach their goals
Collectivist, other-focused emotions can cause individuals to repair the
damage done to relations

Emotions

In negotiation conflict:
those with negative ego-focused feelings will put pressure on their
opponents to make concessions
those experiencing other-focused may adjust their expectations to
get an agreement
Emotions could drive them even further apart, with one side
attempting to force a resolution and the other withdrawing from any
interaction
Emotions can exacerbate the in-group/out-group distinction and
make any resolution of the conflict even more difficult

Intercultural approach to conflict

Ting-Toomey et al. (2000) advocate the inclusion of emotional

expression in Thomas-Kilmanns model to account for the many
subtleties in conflict management

Intercultural approach to conflict

Dominating

S
e
l
f
f
a
c
e
c
o
n
c
e
r
n

Integrating

Neglect
(PassiveAggressive)

H
I
G
H

Responses that side-step

conflict and cause
indirect reaction from
the other party

Emotional
expression

Third-Party
Help

L
O
W

Use an outsider who is

acceptable to both sides
to act as mediator

Compromising

Avoiding

Obliging

LOW

HIGH
Other face concern

An eight-style conflict grid: An intercultural approach

Source: Ting-Toomey and Oetzel (2002), p. 160

Emotional expression: A study

Adam et al (2010):
How the emotions of anger affect negotiations across cultures,
particularly between Europeans/Americans and (American) Asians
Showing anger produced larger concessions from European/American
negotiators but smaller concessions from Asian and Asian American
negotiators

Adam, H., Shirako, A. and Maddux, W.W. (2010) Cultural variance in the interpersonal effects of anger
in negotiations, Psychological Science, 21, 882-889

Mediation

In Asia-Pacific: the mediator deals with concerns of group as a whole;

legitimacy rests on
their social status within the group
their knowledge of traditions, personal characteristics
In West: the mediators task is tightly focused: authority defined more in
terms of their expertise and experience
The mediator can:
reframe the content and process issues of both parties
transform the whole conflict in terms of the attitudes and behaviour
of those involved

Management of conflict

The way conflicts are addressed can vary considerably from culture to
culture. These differences relate to:
the degree to which disagreement is acceptable and therefore the
extent to which conflict is tolerated
the strategies to be adopted when dealing with conflicts
when the manager needs to intervene and the way s/he intervenes

Management of conflict
Tinsley (1998):
Japanese managers: status power model where conflict are
resolved by higher authority
German managers: regulations model where conflict are resolved
using pre-existing procedures or rules
US managers: interest model where conflicts are resolved by
resolving underlying concerns of the other party to make it
worthwhile to reach an agreement

Tinsley, C (1998) Models of conflict resolution in Japanese, German and American cultures,
Journal of Applied Psychology, 83(2), 316-323

Mindfulness

Ting-Toomey (1999) suggests that skills to do with mindfulness can

enhance conflict management:
mindful reframing
translate (non-)verbal messages from the context of the others
cultural viewpoint
re-set priorities after mindfully observing and listening to the
viewpoints and expectations of their opponents
collaborative dialogue
grasp the cultural and personal elements involved
get the others to talk about expectations, face issues

Examples

Managing conflict in the Asia-Pacific region

Malaysia (Mansor, 1998)
Thailand (Roongrengsuke & Chansuthus, 1998)
Korea (Cho & Park, 1998)

Managing conflict in Malaysia

Core values: durability of personal relations, even if a strong

divergence of opinion results in conflict
concern for face : across all ethnic groups
concern for others: generosity, respect, honesty and sincerity, being
upright and caring
respect for seniority: in some conflicts a third person, a neutral
senior clarifies key issues
subordinates will never confront their superior, will
be
uncooperative and eventually resign themselves to the way their
boss behaves

Managing conflict in Thailand

The name Thailand The Land of Smiles reflects the social
harmony in this country. A Thai smiles in pleasant and stress-filled
situations
Smile hides feelings in public: self-discipline to maintain status,
prestige and face: concept of jai yen (cool heart) derived from
Buddhism
Individualism quite predominant, but Thais are more relationshiporiented than results-oriented
Conflict is rarely regarded as either positive or negative: if a conflict
arises, a third party (traditionally a respected elder) is called upon to
mediate

Case example: A Grim Silence

A British manager, upset about the continued unauthorised borrowing of
equipment between departments, burst in on a meeting being held by his
Thai subordinates and loudly berated the responsible person in front of
his peers.
Unwilling to dignify the insulting behaviour with a response, the Thais
remained silent, smiling grimly, until the offending manager left.
The incident was followed, however, by a work slowdown and a spate of
resignations of key personnel.

Managing conflict in (South) Korea

Korea reflects in a way the differences and similarities between
western and eastern attitudes to conflict
Koreans prefer a non-competitive (or non-dominating) strategy in
face-to-face conflict situation
Prefer to use a superior or authoritarian personality to resolve conflict
Differentiate between in-group and out-group situations: when dealing
with out-groups, strategy is comparable to Western competitive
approach