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NOTES: The Competing Style is when you stress your position without considering

ID: 431775 • Letter: N

Question

NOTES:

The Competing Style is when you stress your position without considering opposing points of view. This style is highly assertive with minimal cooperativeness; the goal is to win. The competing style is used when a person has to take quick action, make unpopular decisions, handle vital issues, or when one needs protection in a situation where non competitive behavior can be exploited. To develop this style you must develop your ability to argue and debate, use your rank or position, assert your opinions and feelings, and learn to state your position and stand your ground.

The Avoiding Style is when you do not satisfy your concerns or the concerns of the other person. This style is low assertiveness and low cooperativeness. The goal is to delay. It is appropriate to use this style when there are issues of low importance, to reduce tensions, or to buy time. Avoidance is also appropriate when you are in a low power position and have little control over the situation, when you need to allow others to deal with the conflict, or when the problem is symptomatic of a much larger issue and you need to work on the core issue. To develop skills in this style use foresight in knowing when to withdraw, learn to sidestep loaded questions or sensitive areas by using diplomacy, become skillful at creating a sense of timing, and practice leaving things unresolved.

The Compromising Style is finding a middle ground or forgoing some of your concerns and committing to other's concerns. This style is moderately assertive and moderately cooperative; the goal is to find middle ground. The compromising style is used with issues of moderate importance, when both parties are equally powerful and equally committed to opposing views. This style produces temporary solutions and is appropriate when time is a concern, and as a backup for the competing and collaborating styles when they are unsuccessful in resolving the situation. Compromising skills include the ability to communicate and keep the dialogue open, the ability to find an answer that is fair to both parties, the ability to give up part of what you want, and the ability to assign value to all aspects of the issue.

The Collaborating Style is when the concern is to satisfy both sides. It is highly assertive and highly cooperative; the goal is to find a “win/win” solution. Appropriate uses for the collaborating style include integrating solutions, learning, merging perspectives, gaining commitment, and improving relationships. Using this style can support open discussion of issues, task proficiency, and equal distribution of work amongst the team members, better brainstorming, and development of creative problem solving. This style is appropriate to use frequently in a team environment. Collaborating skills include the ability to use active or effective listening, confront situations in a non-threatening way, analyze input, and identify underlying concerns.

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The Accommodating Style is foregoing your concerns in order to satisfy the concerns of others. This style is low assertiveness and high cooperativeness; the goal is to yield. The accommodating style is appropriate to use in situations when you want to show that you are reasonable, develop performance, create good will, keep peace, retreat, or for issues of low importance. Accommodating skills include the ability to sacrifice, the ability to be selfless, the ability to obey orders, and the ability to yield.

B) Scenario Two: The Family and Community Medicine Division of a large-staff model HMO serves a population that is ethnically diverse. The senior management team of the HMO, spurred by repeated complaints from representatives of one racial group, has encouraged the division, all of whose physicians are white, to diversify. Several black and Hispanic physicians with strong credentials apply for the open positions, but none is hired. Weeks later, a young female family physician learns from several colleagues that the division director has identified her as racist and the obstructionist to recruiting. The comments attributed to her are not only false but are also typical of discriminatory statements that she has heard the division chief utter. The rumors about her “behavior” have circulated widely in the division.

How should the young female family physician handle this conflict with the division chief? State the most appropriate conflict-handling style (compromise, collaboration, competition, avoidance, accommodation).

•   The most appropriate conflict-handling style?

•   Why did you choose this style?

C.) Scenario Three: A manager who reports to the Vice President for Clinical Affairs (VPCA) of a tertiary-care hospital hired a young woman to supervise development of a large community outreach program. During the first four months of her employment, several behavioral problems came to the VPCA’s attention: (1) complaints from community physicians that the coordinator criticizes other physicians in public; (2) concerns from two community leaders that the coordinator is not truthful; and (3) written reports about the project that label and blame others, sometimes in language that is disrespectful. The VPCA spoke several times to the manager about these problems. The manager reported other dissatisfactions with the coordinator’s performance, but he showed no sign of dealing with the behavior. Two more complaints come in, one from an influential community leader. How should the VPCA handle this conflict with the manager? State the most appropriate conflict-handling style (compromise, collaboration, competition, avoidance, accommodation).

•   The most appropriate conflict-handling style?

•   Why did you choose this style?

Explanation / Answer

Scenario Two Answer There two options here are: one would confront the division officer or counter the rumours without involving the division chief. The young female family physician could approach the division chief in a collaborative mode and state ways in which they could build a successful division and speak out the rumours that she has heard about her. She could propose the solution that she wants for them to work together if the division chief refuses she must use a directive strategy and be prepared to lose the job by leaving.

Scenario Three Answer The VPCA should clear the air on the coordinator's performance. If the manager lacks competency skills the VPCA should use a compromise approach and face the coordinator but make sure that the manager is trained in competency skills. In a collaborative mode, the VPCA could discuss various ways of improving performance management Depending on the performance of the manager through performance appraisal the VPCA could use a competitive approach asking the manager to suck the person. Avoidance might lead to low morale hence creating a negative attitude towards the manager in regards to low performance.