Psychology Assignment

Conflicts display widely different characteristics, which means professionals working to resolve them must have a wide repertoire of intervention strategies to contribute to their resolution. Thus far, you have explored different approaches to conflict based on style; cultural influences on conflict; and strategies that address power, rights, and/or interests. There are, however, some commonalities to conflict intervention strategies. By distilling these similarities, you may begin to develop a framework on which to build your own philosophy and working system of intervention strategies.

This week’s Assignment asks you to synthesize information about conflict resolution strategies. In order to successfully do this, you should not only review this and previous weeks’ Learning Resources but also conduct your own research using the Walden Library and reputable academic sources on the Internet.

To Prepare:

• Review this week’s Learning Resources, considering commonalities across conflict intervention strategies and approaches.
• Consider the following questions as they pertain to conflict resolution, allowing your answers to guide your synthesis of interventions and strategies:
  • Are the stages of conflict always assumed to be the same?
  • Are there basic spoken/unspoken agreements about communication during conflict engagement?
  • Are there common ethical responsibilities of third-party interveners?
  • Do intervention strategies differ in theories of conflict, practice, or change?
  • Are there underlying commonalities among the various roles that interveners may play?
  • Among the similarities you have identified, which are process similarities and which are personal/professional strategy similarities?
  • What characteristics of intervention strategies would make them more or less universal?

The Assignment (2–3 pages):

• Explain at least two commonalities to conflict resolution interventions that you identified.
• Explain the features of these interventions that make them valuable in multiple conflict situations (e.g., cross-culturally, in business and personal matters, etc.).