Essentials of Managing Conflict test

Which statement is most characteristic of the avoiding conflict style?

"I don't think we should talk about it right now."

Harmony and her boyfriend, Will, are arguing over how to furnish the apartment that they've just moved into together. Harmony is a fan of antiques, and Will really likes modern furniture. After going back and forth, Harmony decides to use a competing conflict style with Will.Which statement would most fit with a competing conflict style?

"Do you want this apartment to be a place I feel comfortable in or not? I like what I like."

Select the true statement about arbitration as a conflict resolution technique.

Arbitration is often preferred to litigating a dispute in court because it preserves confidentiality.

Gina and her teenage daughter are barely speaking, other than to exchange a few necessary words. The issue is that Gina's daughter recently decided to shave off all of her hair, and Gina was extremely upset that her daughter hadn't asked permission or even told her mom beforehand that she was going to do it. Prior to the incident, Gina and her daughter had a good relationship, but now everything feels different. Which of the following explains why Gina feels the conflict is at the tension stage?

Gina and her daughter are finding communication difficult to impossible.

After 15-year-old Justin's parents got divorced, he began getting into fights at school and staying out past curfew. His behavior escalated, and after Justin got caught selling cocaine, the police arrested him. Justin was charged with multiple drug offenses. A judge sent his case to the new Restorative Justice Community Court that had been created by his county for non-violent offenders.Which of the following is a goal of restorative justice, which the judge might have felt was valuable in Justin's case?

It asks the offender to take responsibility for his/her actions and their consequences.

In what way does shuttle diplomacy differ from conciliation?

Its sole focus is to relay tangible issues/information between parties.

In which of the following scenarios would conciliation as a conflict resolution process be preferred?

Jack is in a dispute with his tenant. He needs the dispute resolved quickly, so he is willing to negotiate.

Jaime feels as though her coworker, Hillary, is a being a little quieter than usual. Since this is unusual behavior, Jaime suspects that it has to do with her criticism of Hillary in a recent meeting. Jaime starts to feel a little annoyed that Hillary is upset over such a small thing.

Jaime says to Hillary, "I feel as though you've been distancing yourself from me since that last meeting. Did what I said upset you?"

Kendra and her friend, Marcus, were trying to decide where to go for lunch. "I really want a burger," said Kendra. "Well, I've been craving some tacos all day!" said Marcus. Kendra was disappointed, because she really didn't like tacos and it seemed like they were always doing what Marcus wanted to do. Despite this, she said, "Okay, we can get tacos if that is what you want." Kendra's conflict style in this situation would be called accommodating for which of the following reasons?

Kendra's response to the conflict is high in cooperativeness and low in assertiveness.

Two nations are interested in negotiating a reduction in their nuclear arms, and they need a resolution process that will focus on tangible outcomes. Which conflict resolution process is the best for this particular conflict?

Shuttle diplomacy

Which of the following is an example of the pre-conflict stage of conflict?

You know that you want to have several children. However, you have not yet had a conversation with your fiance about how many children she wants, if any.

Select the true statement about collaborative law as a conflict resolution process.

Collaborative law works best when the separating couple is willing to work together toward a solution.

Irene received a promotion at work, while Dan did not. Dan felt strongly that he deserved the promotion over Irene, and he blamed her for his being overlooked. A colleague overheard Dan speaking about it at work."Irene doesn't know it yet, but I've started a rumor that she's trying to get the boss fired so that she can take his job. Once the boss hears about that, she'll definitely be in trouble. I don't feel bad about it, because I never liked her from the beginning. At first, there wasn't a good reason; I just thought she was hard to work with. But over time I realized that she was always trying to make me look bad. You know what I'm talking about, right? Don't you agree that she's hard to work with? Anyway, this should all be over soon."Which of Dan's statements describes the crisis stage of his conflict with Irene?

"Irene doesn't know it yet, but I've started a rumor that she's trying to get the boss fired so that she can take his job."

Shante and her husband, Mark, argued over whether to purchase a new car or take a vacation. Mark pushed for a cruise vacation, because he's had no more than two days in a row off work for over a year. Shante pushed for a new car, because it would be three times faster than riding the bus to work.Shante decided she wanted to use a collaborating approach to resolve the conflict.Which of the following would best fit with the collaborating conflict style?

"Mark, neither of us will be happy if one of us is upset. Can we find a way for you to get a break and me to have an easier commute?"

Tom and his wife, Rebecca, are having a discussion about whether Tom can play poker with his brother and some friends Thursday night, or if he must watch the kids while Rebecca attends classes to receive her nursing certificate. Read the dialogue below and select the part of their argument that represents the compromising conflict style.Tom: "I'm going to be late for work. Can we talk about this some other time?"Rebecca: "No, we need to settle this now. The babysitter canceled and my class is tonight. If I miss it, it will be really hard for me to make up the material."Tom: "Don't worry about it; I'll skip poker and stay home so you can go to your class."Rebecca: "What if I leave class a little bit early? That way you can hang out with your brother and your friends, even if you're late to the game.Tom: "No, just go. I've got this."

"What if I leave class a little bit early? That way you can hang out with your brother and your friends, even if you're late to the game."

Cheryl and Jenna are both waitresses at a local restaurant. Cheryl talks to her manager about an issue she's having with Jenna. "I've worked at the restaurant for fifteen years, so I'm kind of set in my ways, you know? When Jenna was hired, the way she treated the customers made me a little uncomfortable, but I couldn't put my finger on why. Then one day, she yelled at a group for taking too long to order, and I realized she was always rude to everyone she interacted with, including me. I told her she was out of line, and she started shouting at me. Now we can barely stand to work together."Which of Cheryl's statements describes the discomfort stage of a conflict?

"When Jenna was hired, the way she treated the customers made me a little uncomfortable, but I couldn't put my finger on why."

Select the scenario that represents the incident stage of a conflict.

Abel discovers that his girlfriend has been reading his old text messages, but he convinces himself that it was unintentional.

A property line conflict between neighbors Prakhash and Elliott escalated as the years went on. The police were called frequently to deal with loud arguments and acts of vandalism between the two until Officer Graves referred them to a community mediation center. In the two weeks since the mediation, the number of calls to police had dropped. Officer Graves contacted Martin, the mediator, and asked if she should consider the conflict resolved.Martin replied that the parties had agreed to meet again for another mediation session, but that the matter of the property line remained a point of tension.Which of the following best describes the status of the conflict now?

The conflict de-escalated, but it has not yet reached the post-conflict stage because resolution is incomplete.

Molly, a company mediator, had agreed to help Martin and Samir. The two men had been in constant disagreement ever since they became co-managers of the marketing department two months ago, and this disagreement was starting to impact all parts of the department. During a mediation session, Molly asked both men to describe their most recent conflict."Well, a lot of our issues have been around this new deal we're trying to close with a company in Japan," started Samir. "Martin just won't listen to my ideas, and our proposal is due next week! At this rate, we'll never land this deal that we absolutely need.""Here we go again," interrupted Martin. "I don't want to discuss this now," he said as he crossed his arms over his chest.Samir threw his hands up in the air in exasperation. "Fine, you win. Let's do it your way. I'm just ready to move on."Martin's statement reflects a conflict resolution style called __________, while Samir's final statement reflects a conflict resolution style called __________.

avoiding, accommodating

Ava and Marcus want to build a new, energy-efficient home in their neighborhood using recently developed, environmentally-conscious construction materials. However, their homeowner's association has strict rules about what sort of materials can be used in new construction, and their plans do not meet the requirements. Ava and Marcus try to argue their position, but they find themselves increasingly frustrated by their inability to get approval for their construction plans.Ava and Marcus are experiencing __________ conflict.

structural

Molly, a company mediator, had agreed to help Martin and Samir. The two men had been in constant disagreement ever since they became co-managers of the marketing department two months ago, and this disagreement was starting to impact all parts of the department. During a mediation session, Molly asked the men to explain their conflict over a recent business proposal. "Tell me exactly which part of the proposal is causing the issues," she instructed."Well," Samir started cautiously, "I grew up in Arizona, and I know that the Hispanic American community there sometimes does things differently from the way we do things here in New York. Martin wants to try to close the deal quickly, but I don't think that will work. We need to focus on building relationships. I'm afraid Martin's way of operating might cause some conflict with the client.""But Samir's approach will take too long! Do you want to be successful or not?" Martin said. By taking into account differences in the Hispanic American community's cultural orientation, Samir is considering their __________ when determining the proposal approach.

subculture

Mark and Jennifer, two conflict resolution mediators, met for coffee on Friday morning to make some plans for the weekend. "What can I get you?" asked Mark, when he spotted Jennifer sitting at a table. "The biggest size coffee they sell," Jennifer responded with a sigh. "This week has been crazy. Do you remember that mediation I was telling you about? The one that started last week?""Sure," said Mark. "I remember that you told the couple that your role was to help them learn to communicate better. They seemed skeptical that they were going to be able to come to agreement." The form of mediation that Mark described is called __________.

transformative mediation