Types of Conflicts and Their Management Strategies in Ministry of Education and General Education Quality Assurance and Examinations Agency in Addis Ababa

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Date

2008-06

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Addis Ababa University

Abstract

The primary concern of this study was to examine workplace conflicts between administrators, experts and supportive staffs in MOE and GEQAEA in Addis Ababa. It was aimed at investigating the major types of conflict incidents, causes, conflict management styles and awareness of employees to functions of conflicts. To this end, descriptive survey method was employed. The subjects of the study were 216 respondents. These a re: 17 administrators, 95 experts, 99 supportive staffs and 5 interviewees. Informa tion was solicited from the subjects through both quantitative (a survey questionnaire) and qualitative (key informant interviews, the researcher's personal observations and open ended questions in the questionnaire) research approaches. Various statistical analysis tools such as percentage, mean, chi-squire, weighted mean , t-test and coefficient correlation were used to analyze the data. The findings of the study revealed that there were some significant opinion or perception differences on the occurrence of conflict incidents and application of conflict management styles. This study depicted that respondents' awareness to functions and outcomes of conflict was low. They tend to perceive conflict generally as negative or destructive to organizations. The study identified the various types of conflicts, their major causes and handling styles. Individual characteristic, situational and structural factors were the major causes to intra-personal inter personal, intragroup and inter group workplace conflicts. Besides, employees used collaborating, accommodating, compromlsmg, avoiding and forcing resolution styles to regulate or control conflicts m educational organizations. Finally, the study recommends designing short term trainings to administrators, experts and supportive staffs to have appropriate awareness to outcomes and functions of conflict and try to identify the major types of existing conflict incidents and their causes to regulate them properly using effective conflict management styles.

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Management Strategies in Ministry of Education, and General Education Quality

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