I
believe that people have negative views of conflict because they subconsciously
define conflict as a fight or defensive situation. Conflict implies that two or
more people are not getting along for whatever reason, and that there may be
negative tension between the parties because of this. Some people see conflict
as being violent or loud, but they do not realize that it could be calm and
easier to resolve if one has the right tools to do so. I certainly think that
if people knew more about conflict they would fear it less. I believe this
because, as the book states, conflict presents “opportunities for personal and
relationship growth in conflict situations” (pg. 288). Conflicts allow for us
to learn about one another, and to create a more intimate relationship through
our newly acquired knowledge of each other. It requires us to take responsibility
for our own actions and be able to recognize a potential conflict before it
erupts, and how to better resolve it if it does. People would fear it less if
they knew that conflict, when handled properly, can be beneficial and crucial
to the success of a relationship.
I agree with a lot of the points you made about why people view conflict as negative. I think it's a socially constructed idea that conflict only involves negative tensions and fighting or arguing between two individuals or parties. People have shared this idea for a long time and we continue to teach it to each other. In order to break the stigma of negative ideals of conflict we do need to understand what it actually means. Knowledge in this sense is very important because there are so many dimensions to conflict. Just like you stated, the book gives us a much better definition of conflict which really is neutral. Conflict has the potential for building people up and breaking people down.
ReplyDelete