Fall 2001, Vol. 9, No. 1

Workplace Psychiatric Interventions:

Conflict Resolution

By Stephen Heidel, MD, MBA
San Diego, CA

Conflict is basic to all human beings. People grow up under different economic circumstances, have different life experiences, and come from families with different values and attitudes. Not expressing one's point of view will only avoid conflict, not resolve it. It is better to admit that conflict exists and deal with it directly. By doing that, the energy created by the conflict can be harnessed and used in a positive manner.

Conflicts in the workplace come in many forms. Each employee in your organization has a different point of view about a given issue and will work to influence the decision to correspond to their way of thinking. Employees are often at odds with their supervisor or manager. Disputes arise with their co-workers, who may be members of their work team. There will be different ideas about how to best complete a task, the relative importance of completing one piece of work before another, work schedules, and the amount of pay an employee receives. Not addressing these issues will cause resentment and bickering, and may even lead to discrimination, wrongful termination and harassment lawsuits. These negative activities will impact the bottom line by causing wasted energy, absenteeism, turnover, and lawsuits.

The key to resolving conflict in the workplace is good communication. Employees need to express their needs, learn from others what their needs are, learn to grow and improve their relations as team members, and generate ideas to solve conflicts.

Occupational psychiatrists have knowledge of the workplace, good communication skills, and the ability to identify underlying issues. These are the skills needed to resolve workplace conflicts. These psychiatrists may be asked to help resolve conflicts at work, perhaps teaching conflict resolution skills to groups of employees or coaching a manager to deal more effectively with conflict between two employees. Conflict resolution skills that can be easily taught include the following:

1. Active Listening. Listening skills are essential for both parties when trying to resolve a conflict. Each employee must pay close attention to the person who is speaking. They should ask for clarification when it becomes necessary. Before they say what is on their mind, they should rephrase what they have just heard and confirm that that is indeed what the other person was trying to communicate. They should also maintain good eye contact and other non-verbal cues to show that they are attentive to what is being said.

2. Express Your Own Views. Each employee must clearly and fully express their views. Each must do this without becoming too emotional or angry. Too much emotion will overshadow what is trying to be accomplished in the conversation.

3. Identify The Underlying Issue. Employees may appear to be upset about their workload or scheduling, when in fact the underlying issue may be lack of respect, not feeling treated equally, or lack of trust. These underlying issues must be identified and addressed before a conflict can be resolved.

4. Generate Options. Once the problem has been defined, it is important to generate possible solutions, much as in a brainstorming session. Each of these solutions should be evaluated and the best can be implemented. This solution may well be a compromise for both parties. Any agreement should be specific, realistic, and occur within a specified time period.

Occupational psychiatrists have the skills to help people in the workplace resolve conflicts. They can teach these skills and act as a resource when employees are unable to resolve conflicts on their own.

 
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