The effects of occupational category, organizational level, organizational size, sex, and conflict opponent on the conflict handling styles of hospital management personnel

Abstract

A study was conducted to explore the relationships of occupational category, organizational level, organizational size, sex and conflict opponent with the five conflicting-handling styles of hospital management personnel. The five conflict handling styles are, Integrating (Problem-Solving), Obliging (Accommodating), Dominating (Completing or Forcing), Avoiding (withdrawal), and Compromising (Sharing). The study found that non-clinical hospital management personnel are more dominating than clinical hospital management personnel and clinical hospital management personnel are more compromising and integrating than non-clinical hospital management personnel whether they are in conflict with superiors, peers or subordinates. Upper hospital management personnel are generally more lominating, integrating, and obliging than lower hospital management personnel whether they are in conflict with superiors, peers, or subordinates. Hospital management personnel from medium-sized hospitals are more dominating and avoiding than hospital management personnel from small-sized hospitals whether they are in conflict with superiors, peers, or subordinates. Male hospital management personnel are more dominating, while female hospital management personnel are more compromising whether they are in conflict with superiors, peers, or subordinates. Hospital management personnel are more integrating, obliging, and compromising when in conflict with superiors than when in conflict with subordinates or peers. Hospital management personnel are more dominating when in conflict with subordinates than when in conflict with superiors or peer. A person's occupational category and conflict opponent play the most significant role in determining which conflict handling style one uses than any of the other independent variables.