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A growing body of research suggests that conflict can be beneficial for groups and organizations (e.g., De Dren & Van De Vliert, 1997). This paper articulates the argument that to be in conflict is to be emotionally activated (Jones, 2000) and utilizes Galtung's (1996) triadic theory of conflict transformation to locate entry points for conflict generation. Application of these ideas is presented through exemplars that demonstrate the utility of addressing emotions directly in the management of organizational conflicts.

AbstractThis article reports on a two‐part pilot project in which a conflict education program and a peer mediation program were implemented in a special needs population to reduce students' aggressive behaviors and improve the school's climate. The participating school was an approved private school to which students (ages five through twenty‐one) with learning disability (LD), emotional disability (ED), or attention deficit‐hyperactivity disorder (ADHD) were referred from public education institutions unequipped to provide necessary services. The project is discussed in terms of needs assessment, program development and implementation, and insights for training with a special needs population. Research was conducted to ascertain the impact of conflict education training on incidents of aggressive behavior and school climate. Results indicate a significant reduction in the most serious behavioral incidents during the project period, as well as a slight increase in moderately serious incidents and a sharp increase in nonserious incidents. A decrease in the frequency of fights among younger students and a significant improvement in school climate were also apparent.

AbstractPrevious conceptualizations of the mediation process have largely focused on the role that mediators play in guiding disputants through the mediation process and facilitating a settlement amenable to both. Part and parcel of mediator efforts has been the use of framing and reframing, whereby the view or perspective of the conflict is modified in one or both disputants so as to produce understanding between them in order to facilitate agreement. We contend that such a focus is unnecessarily limited and neither accurately represents the complexity inherent in mediation transactions nor illuminates alternative creative options available to the mediator. Specifically, the influence of the disputants in the process has been all but overlooked. Utilizing a communication perspective, this article attempts to address these oversights by first offering a transactional view of framing and then discussing the reframing process. Issues related to framing and reframing are addressed in some depth, culminating with implications for further exploration.

AbstractThis study examines the idea that attention to emotion in conflict management leads to conflict transformation. An experimental design compared mediated and negotiated conflict simulations in which participants were primed to discuss emotions as they moved toward agreement. Participants in the mediation group reported increased positive affect, decreased negative affect, and improved perception of other following the simulation. The negotiation group reported decreased positive affect, increased negative affect, and no difference in perception of other, yet they reported increased satisfaction. Mediated agreements included reference to the ongoing relationship, whereas negotiated agreements included tit‐for‐tat arrangements. Implications for organizational conflict management are discussed.