HR4072

MSc

Human Resource Management

Critical Research Issues in HRM

Semester 2

2017-2018

Assessment 1

I confirm that this assignment which I have submitted is all my own work and the

source of any information or material I have used (including the internet) has been fully

identified and properly acknowledged as required in the school guidelines I have

received.

Module Tutor Dr Barbara Menara

Student Number

Word Count 2606

In an organisation, setting conflict is unavoidable because of the various interdisciplinary

group tasks (Billing et al., 2014). When the task force is made up of a variety of professionals

with different perspectives, it is of no new occurrence that every professional would advocate

for the handling of the issue by their valuation (Cox, 2003). In such occasions, where the

professionals differ invalidation, it is inevitable that conflicts would arise. Notably, the

implementation of the multidisciplinary workforce in the organisation has proven to be more

effective and efficient (Craig and Muskat, 2014), an effort that enhances innovation, reduces

the cost and improves creativity as well as management. Inter-professional conflict is

dysfunctional for an organisation and undermines cooperation. This essay will first discuss

the causes of inter-professional conflict, as well as the problems and benefits brought by the

conflict, then it will talk about the countermeasures of organisation in conflict management.

Finally, the conclusion will be given.

According to Spike Lunstroth (2016), inter-professional conflict is an occurrence when two

or more professionals with the interrelated scope of activities contest for honours,

accountabilities, ranking position, autonomy even incentives. Cherry, (2015) argues that

wrangles are endemic amongst various organisations especially where the jurisdictions are

vague about practice, hence overlapping of professional activities. Moreover, this negatively

influences the scope of expertise by the professionals (Adams, 2004). This is clear in the

professions that are crowded and highly specialised in the healthcare profession (Liaropoulos,

2012).

According to Relative Deprivation Theory, Adams (2014) proposes that individuals are not

often in rebellion and make protests against their complaint not until after they are prompted,

and this evokes a feeling of deprivation relatively compared to some individuals or even

groups. In inter-professional conflict context, it is evident that some professionals are likely
to fall into conflict when they are relatively prompted as compared to other professionals

(Liaropoulos, 2012).

The life Model sources from the Biological science of Ecology, which researches on how

living things associate with the environment that is the both the physical and social regarding

to levels of fitting, degree of adaptation and stress handling (Liaropoulos, 2012). This lens is

of paramount significance to apprehend when exploring conflict within inter-disciplines. an

individual’s behaviour is characterised by a number of factors that are without the

individual’s jurisdiction including the societies around them, the physical attributes of the

environment and the interpersonal interactions. The behaviour individual engage during

stressed time can lead to conflict (Cox,2003). In a hospital vicinity, professionals are often

under great deal of stress, thus this catalyses the inter-professional conflict in the organisation

(Adams, 2004; Craig and Muskat, 2014).

Billing et al. (2014) point out that the variation in practical comprehension among the

professionals and difference in the personal dogmas and captivations promote wrangles

among professionals in an organisation. In an assessment carried out by Forbes et al., (2011),

organisational difficulties are the main contributor to the inter-professional conflicts. Some of

these organisational contributors include having more than solitary supervision. Hence this

tampers with the giving of direction by the managers to the subordinates (Adams,2004).

Moreover, this distorts the job description structure and poor distribution of resources among

the professions in the organisation (Cherry,2015). Other sources of conflict are minimal job

gratification and academic variation which leads to hindrances in communication among

professionals. Krogstad et al. (2004) evaluated that Doctors and nurses are of the same

profession but they both differ in the knowledge scope they both attain. Notably, the doctors

are perceived to be of high esteem in that they are seen to know more compared to the nurses.
Different professions tend to conceptualise and tolerate wrangles in an array of viewpoints

(Cox,2003). Some professions seem to be attached to advanced inception for constraints,

depression and wrangle that leads an individual to conceptualise circumstances to be

conflicting later on unlike the other expertise they may presume it to be one, thus make to

diverse the tactic of countering the conflict with urgency. This leads to a slackening in

resolving minor issues between the professions (Burnett et al., 2009). For example, a dispute

about prescription may be conceptualised by nurses to be a major one, whereas a resident

may not be affected by the gravity of matter as a conflict at all. Such a situation is referred to

conflict asymmetry. Latest empirical outcomes stipulate that this irregularity of skirmish

conceptualisation within an organisation is detrimental to team operational (Glitterman,

2009).

The level of variation as stipulated by the asymmetry of conflicts may be intensified by the

conceptualisation or the hierarchical structure integrated by the workforce in the organisation.

People with higher academic credentials tend to take control in any participation in the

workforce collaboration. Liaropoulos, (2012) describes three key roots of workforce conflict.

First, is the lack of empathy for other professional’s role in the organisation, which leads to

misperception concerning who is in control and the precise significance of every member of

the organisation. The second source of conflict is the absence of sympathy in each member

scope of practice, which occurs especially when different profession are added to the

workforce of the organisation. This leads to conflict when the predecessor of the workforce

realises the new entrants to be having an exemplary skill, thus retaining the potential to outdo

the responsibility on the workforce in the organisation. Consequently, the new entrants on the

organisation’s workforce may be inexperienced in the affiliation and the assimilation with the

members of the organisation that is in existence (Burnett et al., 2009). Thirdly, answerability

can be the root of the inter-professional conflict. Members of the organisation that are ranked
above perceived themselves solely accountable for the entire organisation, while the rest of

the members perceive themselves responsible for their tasks (Liaropoulos, 2012).

Arguably, there are some basic variations in values between professions that may lead to

wrangles. For example, the medical professional entirely values the saving of lives rather

than observing eminence of life for the patient (Cox,2003). The relation between the medical

practitioner and the patient tend to be a demanding one in that the sick person is the victim of

the instructions of medicating practitioners. The patient is expected to comply with the

administered instructions to attain the desired results of the doctor. This may be in contrast

with the social value of the patient, especially the level of self-determination shown by the

patient. Hence, the conflict may arise when the patient is not willing. Eventual result may not

be attained thus tarnishing the image of the medical institution (Billing et al., 2014). There

may be the existence of theoretical variations between the doctors and nurses in the

intervention approach of the patient, in that nurses are impacted with the skill to apply

questioning, operative methodology interventions concerning the ideologies such as

environmental viewpoint as well as system theory (Cherry, 2015; Craig and Muskat, 2014).

Culture may also act as a breeding ground for inter-professional conflicts. Culture cuts across

the way of life of a person and some of the cultural practices are barriers that may limit an

individual in an organisation to behave in particular manner (Cox, 2003). For instance, in a

hospital setting, some practitioners may take a bullet surgery as an offence to their profession,

whereas there are those that have no issue pertaining this. The difference may lead to conflict

in that, to some it may be offensive to carry out such a practice, while others are not swayed

by the act (Craig and Muskat, 2014).

The variation in standards, philosophies and the professional integrity that members of an

organisation bring into the work force. Notably, the differences improves the effectiveness in

the organisation’s production (Cherry, 2015; Billing et al. 2014). In a Medical field setting,

the differences draw the lines between the science and art to be applied by the pratitioners.

The professionalism in the medical field is influenced by the integrity and standards of each

individual, in case of conflict this may propel it (Burnett et al., 2009). Often the inter-

professional conflict between the doctors and the nurses is as a result in difference in the

philosophies to handle situations (Cox, 2003).

The sharing of the common resources, may lead to inter-professional conflicts in an

organisation (Cox, 2003; Craig and Muskat, 2014). The scarcer the resources in the

organisation the higher the chances of conflicts. This occurs in that the staff needs to use the

same resource, thus when each of the staff need to use it while the other is using it

(Glitterman, 2009; Craig and Muskat, 2014). This undermines the pursuance of each other’s

aims thus arise of chaos. If a hospital has few offices, for instance, this can lead to conflict as

each of the shred offices may lead to traffic as each of the doctor needs to use the office

(Billing et al., 2014).

Most professionals attain skills via different ideologies, and this may be the ground on which

the conflict may breed from. These and other variation in the discipline may be in contrast to

the validation of work (Cox, 2003). These differences catalyse the conflicts. For example, in

a hospital setting, all the medical practitioners may not apply the theories on the psychology

of the patient in the same particular manner, but they can embrace the diversity. This can

cause various wrangles, whereby the practitioners can evaluate each other’s methodology as

insignificant, compared to others (Craig and Muskat, 2014).

The dysfunctional impacts of inter-professional conflicts an organisation; the wrangles affect

both the personal and organisational productivity (Heaton, 2008). The resolving process takes

allot of the managerial time and focus which could be utilised in other productive things. In a

hospital the conflict can affect the staff’s performance at the individual level. Conflict affects

individual psychology soberness thus affecting the performance. As the staff’s performance is

minimal, the eventual hospital performance will be subdued (Glitterman, 2009).

Hanyok et al., (2013) recognises in the conflicting situation, people tend to stimulate their

self-interest without any regard to other persons in the organisation. Often, people push on

goals that favour their existence in the organisation. In the case study, Brown et al. (2011)

state hospital managerial teams in cases of conflicts, they push on agendas that upholds their

existence in the hospital at the cost of others, sometimes they lead to termination of other

core workers.

At times when there are prolonged conflicted situation in the organisation, affected parties

encounter emotional and physical disorders (Billing et al. 2014). This springs mental

disorders. In most cases this occurs to psychologist, as they solve intensive situation in the

hospital that involve a lot of mental involvement. Agreeably, this affects the eventual cycle of

the hospital (Cherry, 2015; Billing et al. 2014).

According to Forbes et al. (2011), sometimes conflict may lead to sabotaging of the work,

low morale of employees, reduction in the market segment of production and consequently

deterioration in the productivity. The decline in morale affects the service delivery of the

nurses for instance, the zeal to serve people if directly affected and this can lead to higher

traffics in the hospital.

In conclusion, inter-disciplinary conflicts are entirely made up of seven conflict subjects

namely relationships, securities, standards and morals, organisations role misperception,

grading and authority, character and style and message conveyance and trivial conflict

managing techniques namely evasion, the compelling method, and problematic resolving

methodology stayed recognised and deliberated. The application of these methodologies the

organisation is assured of sustainable harmony, and there is mitigation of wrangles that may

arise at all levels of the organisation. The possibility of inter-professional conflict in an

organisational situation from fluctuating professional perceptions has been exploring. The

segmentation of the description replies conceptualisation of the organisational conflict with

several vital sources of the wrangles and trivial key wrangle controlling and mitigating

methodologies. It is clear from the guidelines and example that confident approaches of

conflict controlling are indispensable in the application of inter-professional wrangles and

should be incorporated into any organisation regardless the level of diversity. As more studies

authorise and supplement these theories of resolving they are being integrated to all types of

organisations and the processes are being acknowledged by most of the organisations and

reinforcing their working harmony among the members and a healing process is slowly being

integrated into the systems of associations.

References

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