FAQ'S

1. How will knowing my own conflict management style help me?
2. The way I handle conflict changes depending on the situation and who I am in conflict with. How does the questionnaire reflect this?
3. Can I change my conflict management style? How?
4. Has this questionnaire been tested for validity and reliability?
5. How can I learn more about conflict management styles?

How will knowing my own conflict management style help me?

By understanding your own conflict management style you have taken the first step in being more effective in conflict situations. Awareness of your own behavior and recognizing the consequences of that behavior will allow you to consider whether that behavior is leading to the results you want. If not, it also means that you can modify and adjust how you are responding to the conflict so that you will experience conflict in a more positive and productive way.

The way I handle conflict changes depending on the situation and who I am in conflict with. How does the questionnaire reflect this?

The questionnaire results indicate your general preference for a particular conflict management style but they also indicate your comfort with and usage of all five conflict management styles. In your scores, you can identify other styles you use. If, for example, your preferred conflict management style is Hummingbird but your Parakeet score is relatively close (within 10 points) of your Hummingbird score this would indicate that you also use the Parakeet conflict management style quite frequently.

Can I change my conflict management style? How?

Our conflict management styles are learned behaviors. We may not be aware of them because they are more a part of our subconscious rather than our conscious but they have been reinforced by past experiences, by role models, by our upbringing, etc. For this reason, conflict management styles can also be changed and modified. You can learn to use any conflict management style. What it takes is conscious effort and practice.

Has this questionnaire been tested for validity and reliability?

The validity and reliability of the Managing Differences Instrument is supported by the same research and rigor that one expects from a large sample statistical framework. Drawing on the principles of survey science, multivariate quantitative analysis and benchmark assessment methodologies, the Managing Differences Instrument has been and is continuously being evaluated with the aim of optimizing the question set and underlying analytic metric for scoring the responses. The instrument has been critiqued for methodological gaps and subjected to a variety of statistical tests, engineered to assess internal and external consistency. Additionally, using multiple samples drawn from various sectors of public and private industry, a comprehensive white paper, due out in late 2004, will provide additional independent verification on the viability and applicability of the Managing Differences Instrument.

How can I learn more about conflict management styles?

Conflict is for the Birds: Understanding Your Conflict Management Style is an informative and entertaining book that explores conflict management styles in detail, Written by Gayle Wiebe Oudeh and Nabil Oudeh, two leading authorities on conflict management, this book gives you insight on your own conflict management style as well as how different conflict management styles interact with each other. You will find helpful tips on how to deal with people when they use various conflict management styles that you may find difficult or challenging and how to determine the appropriate uses of all five conflict management styles.

For more information go to www.conflictisforthebirds.com

If you have any questions regarding this personal assessment questionnaire do not hesitate to contact us.