Conflict Management

People have different approaches when it comes to resolving conflict or stress in relationships. It is important to keep in mind the aspects of escalation and de-escalation. If there is a move toward escalation, there is a strain in the way the person is “standing their ground.” If there is a move away from [Page 100]escalation, one person takes the other person's feelings into account. In addition, the person involved is attempting to “save face” and move on. Sternberg and Soriano (1984) studied personal styles of conflict management (conflict resolution). They believed that a person's personal style of conflict stays rather consistent no matter what type of conflict he or she encounters. There is no one kind of strategy that works in conflict management, since we all have different ways of interpreting the same series of events. We also have our own style of dealing with conflict, depending on our upbringing, our belief system, and our knowledge about an issue. Conflict management differs, too, when we deal with people who are silent, refuse to get involved in the conflict, or are utterly abusive in the situation. For more information, see Sternberg and Soriano (1984).