The Causes of Conflict in Public and Private Sector
Organizations in South Africa
Chris van Tonder
Werner Havenga
Jan Visagie
The uncertainty that accompanies organizational change heightens
prospects for intra organizational conflict. Notwithstanding this, the
knowledge base on the sources (or causes) of organizational conflict is
underdeveloped - largely as a result of a low incidence of empirical re-
search, and in particular in South Africa. The current study explored
the perceived sources of conflict in two South African organizations
operating in different economic sectors. An experimental survey focus-
ing on both the causes and the impact of conflict was administered to
a sample of 203 employees, representing both companies. Comparative
analysis revealed significant differences between the two organizations'
views with regard to the causes and consequences of conflict. The impli-
cations of these findings for future research and conflict management
are discussed.
Key Words: organizational conflict, conflict management, human
resource management, management
jEL Classification: D740, L290, M120
Introduction
Major change and continued turbulence in the social, political, techno-
logical and economic environments at a global level, but also locally in
South Africa, are creating an uncertain and complex environment in
which organizations have to operate. Fuelled predominantly by rapid
advances in the information and communications technology (ict) sec-
tor, globalism has become both a cause and a consequence of sustained
change (Van Tonder 2008), which, by all accounts, appear to be in-
creasing in magnitude and pace (Burnes 2003; Schabracq and Cooper
Dr Chris van Tonder is a Professor in the Department of Human
Resource Management, University of Johannesburg, South Africa.
Dr Werner Havenga is a Senior Lecturer in the Department of Human
Resource Management, University of Johannesburg, South Africa.
Dr Jan Visagie is an Associate Professor at the School of Human
Resource Sciences, North-West University, South Africa.
Managing Global Transitions 6 (4): 373-401
2000; Vakola, Tsaousis, and Nikolaou 2004; Van Tonder 2007a; 2007b).
Increasing uncertainty and complexity in the operating environment
of organizations provide fertile ground for the onset of conflict in the
workplace (in the vernacular conflict is typically viewed as a form of dis-
agreement or argument, or an incompatibility in the views, opinions,
principles and so forth of two or more individuals - The South African
Concise Oxford Dictionary 2002: 242). Indeed, an increase in the inci-
dence of conflict is to be expected (cf. De Dreu, Van Dierendonck, and
De Best-Waldhober 2002). Given these considerations a strong case can
be argued for a heightened probability of conflict in both public and pri-
vate sector organizations in South Africa on grounds of the influence
of, among other, organizational change, affirmative action programmes,
competition for scarce resources and regular changes in management.
In the South African context, however, limited empirical information is
available on local authorities' and private sector businesses' awareness
and understanding of conflict, their perception of the causes or sources
thereof, and how conflict should be managed. In this regard Holtzhausen
(1994,19) has argued that organizational conflict can be resolved if the
causes are identified and solutions are found which accommodate all the
parties involved. Indeed, attempting to deal with and/or manage conflict
successfully without identifying the causes of such conflict is a lost cause
(Havenga 2004, 04). With conflict being a pervasive phenomenon in or-
ganizations, effective management i. e. dealing with conflict in such a way
that it does not recur, is clearly needed. In this regard the management
of the origin (or sources) appears to be key to the effective resolution
of the conflict. This, in turn, presupposes that managers have a clear un-
derstanding of the many sources of conflict in organizational settings (cf.
Nelson and Quick 2001,24).
With regard to the causes of conflict, it is useful to note that the causes
(sources) and 'conditions' of conflict can be linked and collectively re-
garded as prerequisites for conflict (Jordaan 1993,25-45). Closer scrutiny
of relevant terminology reveals that several authors in fact equate sources
of conflict to prerequisites or causes of conflict (Marx 1965; Dahrendorf
1976; Hellriegel, Slocum, and Woodman 1983; Robbins, Odendaal, and
Roodt 2003).
Marx (1965) and Dahrendorf (1976) specifically emphasized freehold
(poverty rights), poverty, social mobility, absence of security, unemploy-
ment, competition and class consciousness as causes of conflict. Some of
these sources were implicitly identified by the authors as forming an inte-
gral part of the structure of society. Scholars in the domains of sociology,
industrial sociology, behaviorism, and management science have since
incorporated these causes, in one way or another, in their typologies of
the causes of conflict (Ashley and Orenstein 1985; Lopreato and Hazel-
rigg 1972; Deutsch and Coleman 2000; Ritzer 1992; Turner 1991). Most of
these scholars, however, approached conflict and its causes from a macro
economics and political perspective and paid very little attention, if any,
to conflict as experienced at the level of the individual organization or
business, whether small, medium or large.
Problem Statement and Objective
The impact and consequences of unattended conflict in the workplace on
employees and the organization generally (cf. Dijkstra 2006), would ar-
gue for immediate attention to the resolution of the conflict rather than a
careful and systematic (and invariably more time-intensive) approach to
investigating the underlying causes of conflict. There is little to indicate
that organizations actually attempt to establish the underlying causes of
institutional conflict. Rather, and in order to resolve conflict, individu-
als or groups resort to conflict management instruments without first
determining what the sources (causes) of conflict are - a key element
in developing appropriate conflict resolution strategies (Havenga 2004,
88). Mayer (2000, 8), for instance, argues that if the causes of conflict are
known and understood, a conflict map can be developed, which could
guide conflict resolution processes. Understanding the different forces
that inform conflict behavior consequently empowers the facilitator or
manager with the opportunity to develop a more selectively focused and
nuanced approach for dealing with the specific occurrence of conflict.
An important consideration, however, is the likelihood of organization-
specific conflict perceptions. In much the same way that employees at
different levels within the organization tend to differ in their percep-
tion and characterization of a common change event (cf. Van Tonder
2006; 2007b), so too should inter-organizational differences in conflict
perception be anticipated. Perceived differences in the characterization
of organizational changes imply a differentiated approach to dealing ef-
fectively with the unfolding change event (i. e. 'change management'). A
comparative analysis of conflict perceptions, between different types of
business organizations, may consequently itself assist in the process of
identifying appropriate conflict resolution styles or strategies.
The key research question that emerges from this brief consideration
of organizational conflict is whether the perceived causes of institutional
conflict are organization-specific or universal across organizations in dif-
ferent economic sectors. Secondly, and related to the former, is whether
employees' experience of the impact of the conflict is organization-specific or
common across different organizations? The current study's primary ob-
jective, consequently, was to establish and compare causes of conflict in
a private business and a public concern. As a secondary consideration,
the study also attempted to establish, at this preliminary stage, variation
in the reported impact of conflict on the individual employee.
Before considering the design and methodological parameters for
conducting such an (exploratory) study, it is necessary to briefly con-
sider prevailing views on the sources of organizational conflict.
Sources of Conflict
The number and range of potential sources of conflict suggested by
scholars are substantive, but most of these were theoretical conceptu-
alizations with rigorous empirical research a rarity. The scientific legit-
imacy of these claimed sources of conflict as well as the categorization
systems proposed, remain problematic in the absence of empirical re-
search. This is particularly applicable to the South African environment
where empirical studies on the causes of organization-level conflict are
not in evidence.
When considering research beyond the South African setting, it is ob-
served that the causes of conflict emphasized by scholars seldom perti-
nently addressed the organization or business level. Earlier and more re-
cent accounts of these sources of conflict in many instances addressed the
subject at the macro-structural rather than the micro- or business level,
where these sources were typically interpreted as prerequisites for con-
flict to develop (Dahrendorf 1976; Jordaan 1993; Marx 1965; Mayer 2000;
Robbins Odendaal, and Roodt 2003; Stroh 2002). Those who did con-
sider the causes of conflict at the organizational level identified a multi-
tude of potential sources of conflict. Accordingly, such sources or causes
included differences in knowledge, beliefs or basic values; competition
for position, power or recognition; a need for tension release; a drive
for autonomy; personal dislikes; and differing perceptions or attributes
brought about by the organizational structure, different role structures,
heterogeneity of the workforce, environmental changes, differences in
goals, diverse economic interests, loyalties of groups, and value discrep-
ancies, which were all considered at various stages as major causes of
conflict in organizations (Renwick 1975, 444-456; Weider and Hatfield
1995, 687).
Havenga (2002, 160) indicated that causes of conflict at the level of
the organization could also include resource availability; affirmative ac-
tion programs; the scope and content of workload; the introduction of
new management techniques; and differences of a cultural and racial na-
ture. A typology that further categorizes sources of conflict is offered
by Nelson and Quick (2001, 424-8) who differentiate between struc-
tural factors (causes) i. e. those that develop from within the organiza-
tion and originate from the manner in which work is organized, and sec-
ondly, personal factors, which emerge as a result of individual differences
among employees. Although the potential sources of conflict seemingly
abound, the important role of communication as a potential source of
conflict appears to be understated. With a few exceptions (Ritzer 1972;
Robbins 1998; Vecchio 2000) communication is infrequently considered
as a source of conflict. The typologies utilized by these authors tend to
suggest that the various sources of conflict can be classified into three
categories, namely communication processes, structure, and individual
behavioral factors. However, despite the frequency with which causes
(sources) of conflict are nominated or suggested, empirical support for
the claimed validity of these causes or typologies is substantively lacking,
which suggests that any and each categorization framework is as helpful
or unhelpful as the next.
Research Methodology
The preceding and somewhat reductionistic perspective on conflict be-
lies the complexity that has gradually crept into definitions of conflict
over time. These definitions have invariably further differentiated or ac-
centuated different types of conflict, for example intrapersonal, interper-
sonal, intra- and intergroup conflict, and organisational conflict (Rahim
1983). Others have focused on the different dimensions on which con-
flict is partially or completely described, for example, the emotive and
cognitive components of conflict (cf. Schmidt and Kogan 1972), while
others accentuate the act of opposition, disagreement or argument (the
action component) of conflict as emphasized in the Oxford definition.
It is understandable that definitions will range from the inclusive to the
exclusive and would reflect discipline-specific foci and variation.
Several considerations, however, have a bearing on the manner in
which conflict is conceptualized and operationalised in this study. The
paucity of empirical research in the South African context suggests an ex-
ploratory study which would constitute a first step towards more refined
and focused research on the sources of organizational conflict. The cur-
rent study consequently aims to empirically explore the causes or sources
of conflict as perceived by employees of participating organizations.
Moreover, the adoption of a specific definition of conflict could im-
pose unnecessary constraints on the operationalisation of the construct,
especially if it is acknowledged that the average employee is bound to
have an internalized, yet rudimentary concept of conflict - more in line
with popular usage and definitions. Dijkstra (2006,104-5) for example
has proposed that the distinction between cognitive and affective conflict
be abandoned on the grounds of the strong correlations observed in two
independent studies and the virtual impossibility of precisely separating
out cognitive and affective dimensions in an assessment of workplace
conflict. For the purpose of this study and drawing on definitional pa-
rameters utilized among other by Dijkstra (2006, 21), De Dreu, Harinck
and Van Vianen (1999), Schmidt and Kochan (1972), and Wall and Callis-
ter (1995), conflict is viewed as a dynamic process that commences with a
perception of incompatibility of opinions, beliefs, principles, values, and
perceptions between individuals and groups of varying sizes.
Practical considerations suggested a survey-based field study design.
This entailed the development and administration of an experimental
questionnaire that sampled employees' perceptions with regard to vari-
ous causes (or sources) of organizational conflict and, secondly, employ-
ees' reported experience of the impact of institutional conflict. For com-
parative purposes two organizations operating in different economic sec-
tors were approached for participation in the research. The methodolog-
ical parameters of the study are briefly outlined in the ensuing section.
THE RESEARCH SETTING
For the current study the research setting was limited to one public (non-
profit) local authority and one private (profit-orientated) agricultural
company. The choice of these two organizations was based on the per-
ceived differences in their relative status, not only in terms of their core
business orientation (public versus private) but in particular because of
the differential rates at which affirmative action and transformation pro-
grams have been implemented in these organizations. At the time of the
research, the local authority has progressed considerably with regard to
affirmative action and transformation programs, and in excess of 45%
of its employee complement was people of color. In the case of the agri-
cultural company more than 90% of the employees in post levels 5 to
16 were white. Differences are also observed in the organizations' em-
ployee profiles on dimensions such as ethnicity, language, social and cul-
tural factors, but also in terms of the pace with which affirmative action
and transformation have taken place in the organizations. Against this
context, it is intuitively logical that variation in the causes and mani-
festations of conflict would more readily surface in a comparative study
of organizations with more rather than less diverse employee profiles.
The primary focus, consequently, is not so much on discerning differ-
ences between similar organizations as it is about discerning variation
in potential sources of conflict (which is maximized by the inclusion of
dissimilar organizations and consequently employee profiles).
Notwithstanding the preceding, and using a common measure, both
the local authority (municipality) and the agricultural company were
classified as B-category (or B-type) organizations when considered in
relation to 'peer' organizations. This simply meant that the two partici-
pating organizations were comparable in terms of the size and scope of
operations.
MEASURING INSTRUMENTS
The study utilized a single, experimental questionnaire to explore re-
spondent perceptions of the causes and manifestations of organizational
conflict. It comprised three sections which sampled biographical infor-
mation (section a), perceived causes of organizational conflict, (sec-
tion b), and alternative manifestations or consequences of organizational
conflict (section c).
Section b employed a 4-point Likert-scale which allows respondents
to indicate the extent of agreement or disagreement with listed causes
of conflict. The choice of variables for inclusion in section b, the poten-
tial causes of conflict, was hampered by the many different viewpoints
on what variables should be regarded as causes of organizational con-
flict. The limited empirical research available, furthermore, does not pro-
vide adequate guidelines or pointers in terms of more or less prominent
causes, or the settings or circumstances in which they are likely to be ob-
served or not. As point of departure, nine seemingly more prominent
sources of conflict were identified from the literature, as well as affirma-
tive action - a potential cause of organizational conflict that is novel and
unique to South Africa. This variable has received attention in several
other areas of scholarly pursuit, but in the domain of conflict research
has received limited attention. It was argued that these ten causes should
suffice as an initial and exploratory framework for revealing differences
between different organizations (and different sectors) on the causes of
organizational conflict (should they exist). Subsequent research could
focus more pertinently on using a refined and possibly more elaborated
list of potential causes of organizational conflict. The ten sources of con-
flict evaluated empirically were: affirmative action; cultural differences;
racial differences; new management techniques; scarce physical resources;
effective personnel; rationalization; new technology; extent and content of
employee's work; and misuse of power.
Section c made use of seven statements which conveyed different
forms in which conflict could manifest. These were identified after con-
sidering the views of Folger (1993), Nelson and Quick (2001) and Opotow
(2000) and included a decline in performance, hostility towards col-
leagues, a decline in cooperation, experienced depression, considering
a job change, alienation from colleagues, and developing health prob-
lems. Respondents were asked if they experienced conflict and if so, how
it impacted on them. They then had to indicate those consequences or
manifestations that applied to them.
The questionnaire was pretested in a pilot study to enhance its validity
and was administered among academic colleagues at two universities,
and human resources managers and staff-members of the organizations
that participated in the study (but who did not form part of the sample).
the sample
For both the local government and the agricultural organizations, sam-
ples were drawn from top-management and middle-management as well
as operational levels. In the case of the local authority a stratified random
sample was drawn which spanned all departments and included employ-
ees who differed in terms of gender and race group. The theoretical sam-
ple comprised 193 of a population of 386 employees (job-levels 1 through
13), but in practice 143 questionnaires were returned, of which only 139
were useful. This represents a 72% return rate, which is considered ad-
equate for purposes of employing statistical procedures and making in-
ferences about the population (Hair, Anderson, Tatham, and Black 1995,
103).
The corresponding population for the agricultural company com-
prised 101 employees. Questionnaires were sent to every member of this
group and 65 completed questionnaires were returned. One question-
naire proved unusable, with the remaining 64 questionnaires signifying
a return rate of 63.4%. This return rate, similarly, was considered ade-
quate for purposes of statistical analysis.
In the local authority sample of 139, males dominated (74.1%) while
females (62.5%) constituted the largest contingent of the 64 respondents
in the agricultural company. Local authority respondents were evenly
spread across the age categories 'up to 35 years', '36 to 45 years' and '46
years and older' (34.5%, 32.4% and 32.4% respectively). For the agri-
cultural company the comparative proportions of respondents for these
categories were 28.1%, 37.5% and 32.8% respectively. The majority of the
agricultural company sample, 78.1%, possessed a grade 12 or lower ed-
ucational qualification compared to the 56.1% for the local authority
sample. This difference is accounted for by the observed variation in
post-school qualifications, where the local authority sample consisted
of 43.9% or 61 respondents that possessed a tertiary diploma or degree,
compared to the 21.9% (14 respondents) of the agricultural company.
The most notable differences observed between the two samples relate to
home language. In the case of the local authority, 56.5% of respondents
were Afrikaans-speaking (8.7% were English-speaking) compared to the
92.1% of the agricultural company (no English-speaking respondents
were among the participating members). This substantial difference is
echoed also in the difference observed with respect to African languages.
In the local authority 34.8% of respondents spoke African languages
compared to the 7.9% in the agricultural company. In the latter instance
all respondents (7.9%) spoke Sotho. In the Local Authority sample the
proportion of respondents that spoke African languages (34.8%) com-
prised Tswana (15.2%), Sotho (10.9%), Xhosa (5.8%) and Zulu (2.9%).
For the purpose of analyzing the structure of the measurement instru-
ments, the two samples were combined and treated as a single sam-
ple. However, demographic indicators (e.g. group/organizational affil-
iation) allowed the researcher to control for variation between groups
and where indicated independent analyses per subsample were con-
ducted.
PROCEDURE
Authorization to conduct the research and administer the questionnaires
was obtained in advance from both companies, and employees were no-
tified of the impending research via the Human Resource departments
of the participating organizations. In both instances respondents were
briefed and questionnaires distributed with the assistance of these de-
partments. Protocols were all received within two weeks of distribution.
data analysis
Data obtained in response to the questions on the sources of conflict
(section b) was of a continuous (interval) nature, while that obtained in
respect of the impact of conflict (section c) was of a categorical nature,
requiring different analytical procedures. For all analyses the spss 16.0
program (spss 2007) was utilised, and for all statistical tests an alpha or
significance level of 0.05 was the accepted threshold at or beyond which
the occurrence of a type i error will be tolerated.
On grounds of the theoretically inductive manner in which the sources
of conflict items were identified and the questionnaire constructed, it was
uncertain whether the different sources of conflict (items in the ques-
tionnaire) did in fact measure distinct constructs. For this reason prin-
cipal components analysis, which utilises total and unique variance as
opposed to shared or common variance, was selected to reveal potential
latent constructs and to establish underlying patterns in the data set. This
suited the exploratory objectives of the study to a greater extent than fac-
tor analysis (cf. Hair et al. 1998). The internal consistency of the extracted
components (sources of conflict) was established using Cronbach's a,
after which component scores were computed and mean differences be-
tween the local authority and the agricultural organisation analysed with
the aid of anova procedures.
For the second focus of the study which dealt with the impact or mani-
festation of conflict, the obtained categorical (frequency) data were con-
verted to proportions and the different effects of conflict (variables) were
subjected to an exploratory hierarchical cluster analysis using Ward's
method. This was followed with a two-step cluster analysis, which in-
corporated the extracted sources of conflict as continuous variables. The
local authority and the agricultural company were then compared on
the basis of how respondents per organisation were grouped by the pro-
cedure.
Research Findings
The results of the empirical study are reported in accordance with the
two main foci of the study, namely the causes or sources of conflict and
the effect or manifestation of conflict.
table 1 Intercorrelations among items related to sources of conflict
	Item 1 2	3	4	5	6	7	8	9	10	M	sd
1.	Affirmative action 1.00 .493	433	3 .303	•3i3	453	3 .233	.08	.283	3 .393	2.76	1.07
2.	Cultural differences 1.00	.793	.243	3 .293	.353	.151	.12	.343	.443	2.48	1.08
3.	Racial differences	1.00	.172	.273	.313	.10	.131	.353	.493	2.45	1.03
4.	New management techniques		1.00	.313	.283	.161	.313	3 .333	.313	2.55	.99
5.	Lacking physical resources			1.00	.603	.192	3 .293	.313	.373	3.02	1.06
6.	Shortage: effective personnel				1.00	.273	.263	.363	.453	3.08	1.03
7.	Rationalization/dismissals					1.00	.121	.151	.363	2.21	1.17
8.	New technology						1.00	.423	.11	2.21	1.03
9.	Work: scope, content							1.00	.343	2.33	1.04
10.	Misuse of power								1.00	2.50	1.16
notes Correlations of 0.3 and 0.5 are regarded as indicating medium and large ef-
fects respectively (Cohen 1988). A correlation in excess of 0.3 was considered practically
meaningful for the sample and research population engaged in this study. N = 184, 1p <
.05,2p < .01,3p < .001 (one-tailed).
causes of conflict
After allowing for the elimination of cases with missing values, a sample
of 184 was available for analysis and the intercorrelation matrix of the
ten sources of conflict items was compiled (table 1). The latter was con-
sidered suitable for the application of principle components analysis on
grounds of Bartlett's test of sphericity (approximate x2 (45, N = 184) =
614.17, p < .0005) and the Kaiser-Meyer-Olkin measure of sampling ade-
quacy (.789).
Principle components analysis, using varimax rotation, revealed mul-
tiple components, but four components were retained (three complied
with the latent root criterion of one, while inclusion of the fourth com-
ponent was based on interpretation of the scree plot). The four compo-
nents collectively accounted for 71.34% of the total variance and although
the small number of items per scale (4) impacted on the reliability coef-
ficients, the obtained alpha values (.81, .75, .65 and .62) were acceptable
given the study's exploratory nature (see table 2).
Inspection of table 2 reveals that data on sources of conflict did indeed
follow response patterns which essentially indicate that respondents per-
ceived four primary sources of conflict. These indicate that respondents
view conflict as originating in managerial practices that are perceived as
racially informed (or related) abuses of power (workplace discrimina-
table 2 Rotated component matrix, Eigen values, explained variance
and reliability coefficients
Componentb
Variables	01	02	c3	04
3. Racial differences	.90	.08	.14	-.00
2. Cultural differences	.89	.13	.13	.04
1. Affirmative Action	.55	.40	.04	.22
10. Misuse of power	.51	.32	.13	.48
5. Lacking physical resources	.12	.84	.23	.03
6. Shortage: effective personnel	.22	.81	.19	.17
8. New technology	-.04	.12	.85	-.02
9. Scope and content ofwork	.33	.13	.71	.06
4. New management techniques	.13	.22	.57	.21
7. Rationalization/dismissals	•03	.08	.10	•93
Eigen values	3.90	1.34	1.04	.84
% total variance	39.05	13.41	10.44	8.44
Cumulative variance (%)	39.05	52.46	62.90	71.34
Alpha Coefficienta	.81 (4)	.75 (4)	.65 (4)	.62 (4)
notes N = 184. Principal Component Analysis with varimax rotation and Kaiser nor-
malization.
a Cronbach a calculations based on standardised items/variables. For each of the four
scales the four highest loading variables were retained. Alpha coefficients of .70 or
above are desirable (Bartholomew, Handerson, and Marcia 2000; Nunnally and Bern-
stein 1994), but in exploratory research could be as low as .60 and be acceptable (Hair et
al. 1998).
b Components were labelled Racially-informed management practices (01), Inadequate
and ineffective resources (02), Work demands associated with changes in technology and
management practices (03), and unjust layoffs/rationalization (04).
tion would be illustrative). Inadequate and ineffective resources, which
include physical resources to perform work, but also ineffective staff,
emerged as the second major source of conflict (Component 02 - table
2). Changes in work demands associated with changes (e. g. innovation)
in technology and management practice, and perceived unjust rational-
ization (staff layoffs) emerged as the third and fourth sources of conflict
in these organizations.
The individual variables (items) which loaded highly on the first and
second components (01 and 02) suggest that employees in this study ef-
fectively interpreted racial and cultural differences as synonyms. They
table 3 Analysis of variance for group differences with regard to sources of conflict
	Local Authority		Agricult. Company							
	M	SD	M	SD		SS	df	ms	F p	da
c1	7.91	2.36	6.10	2.51	b	133.88	1	133.88	3 22.933.000	.75
	(2.87; II.48)		(2.87; II.48)		w	1085.61	186	5-83		
c2	7.63	1.68	5.62	1.99	b	171.43	1	171.43	53.693.000	1.12
	(2.39; 9.58)		(2.39; 9.58)		w	609.76	191	3-19		
c3	6.14	1.76	5.00	1.62	b	56.30	1	56.30	3 19.023.000	.66
	(2.38; 9.52)		(2.38; 8.56)		w	565.30	191	2.96		
c4	4.68	1.49	3.88	1.64	b	26.93	1	26.93	2 11.242 .001	.52
	(1.86; 7.44)		(1.86; 7.44)		w	450.22	188	2-39		
notes Values in parentheses represent minimum and maximum values for the group.
Sources of conflict: c1 - racially-informed management practices, c2 - inadequate and
ineffective resources, c3 - work demands associated with changes in technology and
management technique, c4 - rationalization/layoffs perceived as unjustified (sources of
conflict are the retained components from pc analysis).
a Cohen's d (index of effect size) is considered small when ranging between .20 and .50,
medium when between .50 and .80, and large when equal to .80 and above (cf. Cohen
1988; Rosenthal and Rosnow 1991; Valentine and Cooper 2003). An effect size of d = .80
is generally considered practically meaningful.
b - between, w - within, 1p < .05,2p < .01,3p < .001.
similarly experienced difficulty in disassociating a lack of physical re-
sources and a shortage of effective personnel. This observation under-
scores the necessity of empirically testing theory-derived concepts of
conflict (sources of conflict).
When comparing the local authority and the agricultural company on
each of the four sources of conflict, statistically significant differences
were observed between the two organizations (see table 3). For each of
the four sources of conflict the staff of the local authority experienced
this more intensely than those of the agricultural company. Most no-
table, were perceived racially-informed management practices and the
absence of adequate and effective resources, which were more prominent
sources of conflict in the local authority, compared to the agricultural
company, £(1,186) = 22.93, p < .001 and £(1.191) = 53.69, p < .001 respec-
tively. Medium to large effect sizes are recorded for the differences ob-
served between the two institutions with regard to the sources of conflict
(refer Cohen's d, table 3), which suggest that differences are practically
meaningful (or approaching practical meaningfulness).
The mediating role of demographic variables in the perceived causes
of conflict (dependent variable) was tested with several factorial anovas.
Significant main and interaction effects for different demographic vari-
ables were occasionally observed e. g. language for racially-informed
managerial practices, F(2,132) = 4.50, p = .01 and rjp = .06). In a simi-
lar manner main effects for organization and age, and several interaction
effects with organization were observed for the second source of con-
flict (c2 - quality of resources), while a gender-age interaction was noted
for the third source of conflict (c3 - work demands). For the fourth
source of conflict, c4 (rationalization), organization and qualifications
emerged as main effects together with a language-age interaction effect.
The strength of these associations, however, was negligible (the highest
partial Eta-squared recorded were jp = .15 and jp = .10, with the ma-
jority rjp < .07). The influence of these demographics on the differences
observed in the mean sources of conflict scores for the two organiza-
tions are therefore inconsistent and of no practical significance. These
findings instead point to further analyses at the level of the organization
where the role of various other organization-specific variables including
demographic variables might shed further light on organization-specific
respondent views of the sources of conflict. These analyses are beyond
the scope of the current study.
In essence the results suggest that sources of conflict are likely to be
multifaceted, but common to different types of organizations (across
economic sectors) in South Africa, yet may not be equally relevant or
influential in the perceived onset of conflict within these organizations.
manifestation and impact of organizational conflict
The second research question dealt with the manifestation or effects of
organizational conflict. Respondents were presented with seven response
categories which conveyed the effects of conflict (or manner of conflict
manifestation) in their respective workplaces. Each respondent marked
those effects he/she experienced. The frequency with which the different
effects of conflict were experienced by the respondents of the two orga-
nizations is indicated in table 4.
Again, and consistent with the exploratory aims of the study, the ob-
tained response frequencies for effects of conflict (variables) were sub-
jected to hierarchical cluster analysis (cf. Hair et al. 1998) using Ward's
method and squared Euclidian distance (standardized) to reveal struc-
ture and coherence in the categorical data. The dendrogram resulting
from this analysis is presented in figure 1. Variables (or cases) with high
table 4 Frequencies for the local authority and the agricultural company on effects
of conflict
Local	Agriculture	Total
Authority	Company	Sample
Effects of conflict	fa	%	f	%	f	%
0a Performance decline	67	49.3	31	49.2	98	48.3
0b Hostility towards colleagues	37	27.2	18	28.6	55	27.1
0c Decline cooperation	29	21.3	7	11.1	36	17.7
0d Experience depression	65	47.8	24	38.1	89	43.9
0e Contemplate job change	43	31.6	21	33.3	64	31.5
0f Withdrawing from colleagues	41	30.1	26	41.3	67	33.0
0g Develop health problems	41	30.1	14	22.2	55	27.1
notes N = 203. For the local authority, n = 139. For the agriculture company, n = 64.
a f = number of local authority respondents who experienced this effect of conflict, while
% indicatesf expressed as a proportion of all local authority employees that participated
in the research.b f = number of agriculture company respondents who experienced this
effect of conflict, while % indicates f expressed as a proportion of all agriculture com-
pany employees that participated in the research.c f = total number of respondents (local
authority and the agriculture company) who experienced this effect of conflict, while %
indicates this frequency expressed as a proportion of the total sample (N = 203).
similarity (or low distance) are clustered close together. The proximity
observed between effects of conflict on the y-axis indicates this perceived
association between different effects of conflict. This is echoed by the
proximity coefficients on the x-axis where lower order effects of con-
flict (clusters) converge to form more embracive clusters and constructs,
for example depression and health problems are closely associated, which
when clustered together address the impact of conflict on the employees'
physical and emotional wellbeing. This category is somewhat removed
and hence different from experienced hostility towards colleagues, and
withdrawing from colleagues as a result of conflict, which both indicate
the effect of conflict on relations with colleagues. The next level of con-
vergence occurs when thoughts of changing jobs (a state of mind) com-
bine with depression and health problems to provide an overall index of
the impact of conflict on employee wellbeing (mentally, emotionally and
physically). At more or less the same position on the x-axis it is also ob-
served that a decline in cooperativeness as a result of conflict, converges
with experienced hostility towards and withdrawal from colleagues. This
suggests that conflict has a pronounced effect on social and interpersonal
Rescaled distance cluster combine
0 5 10 15 20 25
Label/number i-1-1-1-1-1
Depression 4 —.-
Health problems 7 —'	-
Contemplate job change 5-
Hostility 2
Withdrawal 6 —'	-
Decline cooperation 3---
Performance decline 1 -
figure 1 Effects of conflict: Dendrogram of cluster solutions (hierarchical cluster
analysis using Ward's method and squared Euclidian distance between
observations (converted to z-scores), N = 199)
relations more generally. A decline in the employee's performance ap-
pears to be distinct from the social and individual well-being effects of
conflict. These categories similarly suggest that the effects of conflict in
these organizations reflect different degrees of severity with a decline in
the employee's performance presumed to be less severe than social with-
drawal or depression. Regardless of the relatedness of these categories of
conflict manifestations, they all constitute undesirable outcomes for the
individual and organization.
In summary, hierarchical cluster analysis for this sample indicates
that the experienced impact of conflict contributes to a decline in per-
formance, has a social impact which manifests in hostility, withdrawal
and uncooperative behavior, and impacts on the mental, emotional and
physical wellbeing of the employee.
To probe whether the experienced impact of conflict was consistent
across the participating organizations or organization-specific, but also
associated with the sources of conflict, a two-step cluster analysis proce-
dure was performed. During the first step of this exploratory technique
the categorical variables of organizational affiliation, gender, age, quali-
fications, tenure and the seven effects of conflict, as well as the four stan-
dardized continuous variables (sources of conflict, refer table 2) were in-
corporated in the extraction of 'preclusters'. This was achieved through
the centroid method with the log-likelihood criterion as a distance mea-
sure (Chan 2005; spss 2007). During the second step these 'preclus-
ters' were used as single cases in a hierarchical clustering procedure. The
Schwarz Bayesian information criterion (bic) indicated that five clusters
The Causes of Conflict in Public and Private Sector Organizations 389
table 5 Cluster profiles following two-step cluster analysis: Categorical variables
	Cluster 1a		Cluster 2b		Cluster 3c		Total
Variables	/	%	/	%	/	%	/
Demographic variables							
Organization							
• Local Authority	88	75.2	29	24.8	.0	.0	117
• Agriculture company	7	12.1	15	25.9	36	62.1	58
Gender							
• Male	76	69.7	19	17.4	14	12.8	109
• Female	19	28.8	25	37.9	22	33.3	66
Age							
• Less than 35	22	36.7	26	43.3	12	20.0	60
• 36-45	32	58.2	14	25.5	9	16.4	55
• More than 46	41	68.3	4	6.7	15	25.0	60
Qualifications							
• Up to grade 12	53	48.6	28	25.7	28	25.7	109
• Diploma/certificate	27	65.9	11	26.8	3	7.3	41
• Degree	15	60.0	5	20.0	5	20.0	25
Language							
• English	9	100	.0	.0	.0	.0	9
• Afrikaans	60	48.8	27	22.0	36	29.3	123
• Other	26	60.5	17	39.5	0	.0	43
Tenure							
• 1-4 years	5	14.3	17	48.6	13	37.1	35
• 5-10 years	32	58.2	16	29.1	7	12.7	55
• More than 11 years	58	68.2	11	12.9	16	18.8	85
Effects of conflict							
Performance decline	41	45.6	35	38.9	14	15.6	90
Hostility towards colleagues	17	32.7	30	57.7	5	9.6	52
Decline cooperation	15	45.5	18	54.5	.0	.0	33
Experience depression	37	45.7	37	45.7	7	8.6	81
Contemplate job change	18	32.1	33	58.9	5	8.9	56
Withdrawing from colleagues	17	28.3	28	46.7	15	25.0	60
Develop health problems	28	56	19	38.0	3	6.0	50
notes N = 175. Excludedcases = 28. f conveys the cluster frequency on the specific row
variable, which is expressed in the adjacent column as a % of the total row frequency for
the row variable (indicated in the last column).a n = 95,b n = 44,c n = 36.
table 6 Centroid means on continuous variables (sources of conflict)
Cluster 1a Cluster 2b Cluster 3c
Source of conflict	m sd m sd m sd
Racially-informed management practices (01)	7.35	2.34	8.87	2.01	5.16	1.94
Inadequate and ineffective resources (02)	7.54	1.53	7.55	1.87	5.00	1.77
Work demands associated with changes in	6.04	1.72	5.98	1.89	4.71	1.43
technology and management technique (03)						
Rationalization/layoffs perceived as	4.61	1.47	5.08	1.52	3.38	1.35
unjustified (04)						
notes N = 175. Excluded cases = 28.a n = 95,b n = 44,c n = 36.
were probably optimal, but the spss two-step cluster algorithm by de-
fault selects that number of clusters beyond which the anticipated gains
of adding further cluster information are offset by the complexity of the
new (elaborated) cluster solution, and instead extracted three clusters
(spss 2007). Tables 5 and 6 provide an outline of the three cluster profiles
in terms of included categorical variables as well as the centroid means
and standard deviations for the clusters on the different sources of con-
flict.
As observed in the data presented in tables 5 and 6, the three identified
employee groups (clusters) differ markedly and significantly in terms of
important categorical and continuous variables (figures 2 and 3).
Inspection of figures 2 and 3 reveals that clusters one and three are
effectively organization-specific employee groups with the vast majority
of the membership in cluster one (88 or 83.6% of cluster one member-
ship) employed by the local authority, while all employees in cluster three
(36 or 100% of cluster three membership) are employed by the Agri-
cultural company. Chi-square values (horizontal axes, categorical vari-
ables - figure 2) indicate that cluster one, comprising largely long-serving
male local authority employees, differs significantly from cluster two (a
predominantly young to middle-aged group with relatively short tenure
with membership equally distributed among the Local Authority and the
Agriculture organization), and cluster three (two thirds of members be-
ing female, all Afrikaans-speaking and all employed by the agriculture
company).
Of importance is that the local authority and agriculture company em-
ployees (clusters one and three) do not differ from one another in terms
of the impact of conflict, apart from the muted effects of conflict re-
0
Organization
Gender
Withdrawal
Tenure
Contemplate job change*
Hostility*
Age*
Performance decline*
Language*
Depression*
Qualification*
Decline cooperation*
Health problems*
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
TwoStep Cluster Number = 1
0
Contemplate job change
Hostility
Depression
Withdrawal
Decline cooperation
Performance decline
Age
Tenure
Gender*
Health problems*
Language*
Qualification*
Organization*
0
Organization
Language
Depression
Gender
Decline Cooperation
Health Problems*
Contemplate Job Change*
Hostility*
Tenure*
Qualification*
Performance Decline*
Withdrawal*
Age*
10
20
30
40
TwoStep Cluster Number = 2
50 60	70 80
TwoStep Cluster Number = 3
10
20
30
40
50
60
70
80
figure 2 Extracted clusters and the importance of demographic variables and effects
of conflict: Chi-square
notes Two-step cluster analysis performed through using the centroid method with
log-likelihood as distance measure. N = 175 (case-wise deletion of missing values),
* non-significant, • critical value, test statistic.
-40 -30 -20 -10
0
10
20
30 40
50
60
70
C2StaRes
C3TecWoManag*
C4RationPow*
C1RaCulPow*
TwoStep Cluster Number = 1
-40 -30 -20 -10
10 20	30 40 50 60 70
			
•	C1RaCulPow	•	
•	C4RationPow	•	
•	C2StaRes*	•	
•	C3TecWoManag*	•	TwoStep Cluster Number = 2
-80 -70 -60 -50 -40 -30 -20 -10	0	10 20 30
TwoStep Cluster Number = 3
C2StaRes
C1RaCulPow
C4RationPow
C3TecWoManag
figure 3 Extracted clusters and the importance of sources of conflict: Student's t
notes Two-step cluster analysis performed through using the centroid method with
log-likelihood as distance measure. N = 175 (case-wise deletion of missing values),
* non-significant, • critical value, test statistic.
0
ported on a single dimension (in the former, 28.3% of employees tend
to withdraw socially, while 8.6% in the latter experience depression as a
consequence of conflict). Employees in the agriculture company cluster,
however, also differ significantly from the other clusters in terms of the
absence of a reported decline in cooperation.
In stark contrast, the younger and relatively short-tenure employee
group (cluster two), comprising both the local authority and agriculture
company employees, differs significantly from groups (clusters) one and
three in terms of their experience of the effects of conflict. In this cluster
the proportion of members who reported experiencing six of the seven
manifestations of conflict, ranged between 38.9% and 58.9%. Whereas
the most important differentiating categorical variables for groups one
and three were organizational affiliation and gender (cluster one) and or-
ganizational affiliation, language and gender (cluster three), this group's
most prominent differentiating categorical variables were the six man-
ifestations of conflict. These results suggest that factors other than de-
mographic features and organization-specific features may be contribut-
ing to this intense and wide-ranging experience of the impact of con-
flict. What these factors may be, is the subject of speculation, but stress-
proneness and/or a personality predisposition may be explored as hypo-
thetical factors in subsequent research.
The three employee groups, however, are also significantly differen-
tiated by their perceptions of the sources of conflict (see figure 3). The
shortage of effective staff and resources (02) emerged as a more important
source of conflict for the local authority group (cluster one) compared
to the other groups. By contrast, the employees of the agriculture com-
pany (cluster three) do not perceive the four sources of conflict with the
same intensity as the local authority group (cluster one) and the mixed
membership group (cluster two). The mixed membership group (cluster
two), comprising employees of both the local authority and agriculture
organizations, is significantly differentiated from the two organizational
groups (clusters one and three) on the basis of the significant importance
accorded to racially-informed management practices (01) and perceived
unjust rationalization or layoffs (04) as sources of conflict.
It is not possible to infer causality, but cluster analysis does indi-
cate that younger and shorter tenure employees (male and female, from
both organizations) display a greater sensitivity to sources of conflict as-
sociated with power abuses, and experience such conflict in a signifi-
cantly more elaborate and destructive manner when compared to the
organization-specific employee groups. To be expected, the diverse em-
ployee profiles of the two organizations preclude sensible comparison of
the sources and effects of conflict as observed for the two organizations.
In summary, the exploratory two-step cluster analysis reveals that both
the perceived sources of conflict and the reported effects of conflict for
this sample are group (cluster)-specific but also organization-specific
(yet at the same time not exclusively so).
Discussion and Conclusion
The current study set out to investigate firstly whether the perceived
causes of institutional conflict are organization-specific or universal across
organizations in the public and private sectors and, secondly, whether
employees' experience of the impact of conflict follows similar patterns.
More importantly, results reveal a coherent structure for the sources of
conflict across the different respondent populations and organizations
engaged in this study. Yet, at the same time, evidence of organizational
distinctiveness (organization-specific variation) was also observed. The
exploratory cluster analyses suggest that this 'similar-yet-different' pat-
tern applies equally to respondents' experience of the impact of conflict.
sources of conflict
The results generated by this exploratory study are broadly consistent
with earlier observations by Renwick (1975) and Weider and Hatfield
(1995) who have indicated that factors such as the heterogeneity of the
workforce, loyalties of groups, diverse economic interests, among other,
are relevant sources of workplace conflict. To an extent the findings also
affirm Havenga's (2002) perspective that causes of conflict at the organi-
zational level would include factors such as resource availability, affirma-
tive action programs, the scope and content of work, the introduction
of new management techniques, and differences of a cultural and racial
nature. The findings obtained do indeed indicate these factors to be rele-
vant, but not in the unidimensional and somewhat reductionist manner
in which they were conceptualized. Indeed, sources of conflict are bound
to be more complex and multifaceted than are currently suggested by the
unidimensional labels encountered in the bulk of the literature.
The findings of this study indicate, for example, that it is not manage-
ment that is a source conflict, but management that is predisposed to act
in a racially-informed manner and which manifests in managerial prac-
tices that are perceived as abuses of power that emerges as a source of
conflict. Similarly, it is not rationalization or staff layoffs that are con-
sidered a source of conflict, but rationalization/staff layoffs that are per-
ceived as an abuse of managerial power. New technology in itself (and
new management techniques for that matter) do not prompt conflict,
but it is the relationship of these innovations to the employee's scope and
content of work that is likely to be perceived as a source of conflict in
the workplace. These observations suggest that perceived sources of con-
flict in the organisation cannot be disentangled, inter alia, from broader
systemic, socio-political, economic and labour trends and dynamics. In-
deed, researchers should exercise caution and avoid overly reductionist
conceptualisations of organisation behaviour constructs in an increas-
ingly dynamic and open systems setting.
The prominence of 'organization' as differentiating factor between re-
spondents' views of sources of organizational conflict in the absence of
consistent and significant demographic influences, prompts us to hy-
pothesize that other organization-specific characteristics may be more
important mediators of perceived sources of conflict than may be gener-
ally presumed. This may for example relate to phenomena such as orga-
nizational identity and organizational culture (cf. Van Tonder 2000; Van
Tonder and Lessing 2003), the dynamics associated with distinctive man-
agement profiles and styles in such identity- and culture-specific settings,
the attitudes cultivated under such circumstances, as well as the influence
of these features in attracting employees with a particular profile to these
companies.
The marked differences observed between the two organizations in
terms of perceived sources of conflict and the experienced impact of con-
flict are accounted for by the advanced stage of sociopolitical transforma-
tion in the local authority. Of the two companies, the latter has substan-
tially progressed with the introduction of employment equity practices
and has a large contingent of African (non-white) employees (principles
of affirmative action and employment equity have been implemented
to a considerable extent). This substantially diverse workforce presents
with greater heterogeneity (e. g. in values and belief systems) and hence
the enhanced prospects for conflict (cf. Williams and O'Reilly 1998). The
agricultural company's workforce, by contrast, is substantially more ho-
mogeneous (has very few non white employees in the job levels sampled,
and a single language, Afrikaans, is dominant which, in a broader eth-
nical sense, conveys greater conservatism in nature and culture). This
coherence should translate into a reduced likelihood of misunderstand-
ing and consequently a lower incidence of perceived conflict. Not being
a private sector company, the local authority would experience resource
constraints to a greater extent than the agricultural company. Note, how-
ever, that although these sources of conflict are less intensely experienced
in the agricultural company, they are still strongly felt.
The low incidence with which sources of conflict is perceived in the
agriculture company is likely to be an artefact of a largely homogeneous
workforce where socio-political transformation has not yet progressed
to the extent that the organisation's culture, identity and managerial and
workforce profiles have been altered substantially by the 'enforced' intake
of senior staff from previously disadvantaged communities. Unlike the
significant differences observed between the local authority and the agri-
culture company groups (clusters), which are explained in terms of the
impact of transformation on the homogeneity of the workforce in the re-
spective institutions, the results for the mixed membership group (clus-
ter 2) are less clear. The severity with which conflict is experienced by this
group (cluster 2), which is equally comprised of local authority and agri-
culture company employees, and which is markedly different from the
organisational groups (clusters 1 and 3) points to common denominators
other than institutional affiliation or population demographics. Person-
ality predispositions and tendencies toward anxiety, stress, and burnout,
but also coping styles, belief systems and attitudes may offer important
avenues for more elaborate investigation. In the prevailing South African
setting with its diverse workforces, employment equity legislation, and
heightened sensitivity to racism, it is quite plausible that Baron's (1997)
'hostile attribution bias' may offer additional explanatory power. The lat-
ter refers to a predisposition towards attributing the conduct of other
parties in the conflict situation to hostile motives and objectives.
Although tentative, the results nonetheless suggest that ongoing re-
search should adequately account for the complex influence of context
- both the immediate organizational setting and the broader sociopo-
litical and national context in which organizations are situated. This is
evidenced in references to affirmative action and in particular in its as-
sociation with managerial practices and perceived power abuse.
effects of conflict
Results of the two-step cluster analysis confirmed the largely organisation-
specific nature of not only the perceived sources of conflict, but in par-
ticular also the reported experience and impact of workplace conflict.
Consistent with Dijkstra's (2006) observations, conflict as a stressor in
the current study elicited unpleasant emotions, which are associated with
reduced work performance and individual well-being. Drawing on the
Euclidian distance measures which portray similarity-dissimilarity be-
tween effects of conflict (see dendrogram, figure 1), it can be surmised,
ceteris paribus, that a declining performance would be the most obvious
and common consequence of these three equally undesirable outcomes
of conflict. The interpersonal and social relations impact of conflict, as
well as the compromised mental, emotional and physical well-being of
the employee, represents increasingly severe consequences of workplace
conflict. The intrapsychic dynamics involved in the differential expe-
rience of conflict cannot be discerned from the results of the current
study and represents an important area of continued research into the
sources and effects of workplace conflict. This is important, as differ-
entiated responses to conflict call for differentiated conflict mediation
and management strategies. In the current study (refer figures 2 and
3) the mostly male and longer tenure local authority employee group
(cluster 1), manifested with a significantly greater incidence of reported
withdrawal, which is not only damaging to the organization and will
adversely impact organizational performance, but also suggests and re-
inforces a conflict strategy best described as 'conflict avoidance'. This in
fact appears to be the essence of the response of employee groups two
and three to the experienced conflict. The reported effects of conflict as
evidenced for these two groups similarly convey a conflict negation or
conflict avoidance approach or strategy (see figures 2 and 3). Withdrawal
or alienation from peers and superiors in conflict situations echoes an
avoidance style of conflict management, while experienced depression
may result in a similar avoidance style of dealing with conflict - both ad-
versely impacting on the individual and the organization's performance.
Evidence of such 'avoidance' of conflict, is also observed in, for example,
absenteeism and personnel turnover, as observed by Van de Vliert (1996,
405-25). The observed inefficiencies reported by Van de Vliert (1996)
were also recorded by Jehn (1997, 557), who noted that these inefficien-
cies resulted in poor work performance. This perspective underscores
the importance of differentiating between the occurrence (incidence) of
conflict and the employee and organization's response to such conflict
(e.g. avoidance) - as argued by Dijkstra (2006). Not only will such a
distinction facilitate understanding of the nature of conflict and its im-
pact on every day employee well-being, but it will crystallise the action
component in the response to the conflict ('the reaction'). This in turn
introduces greater focus and specificity and will result in differentiated
conflict management strategies, which should prove more effective in
the resolution of specific sources of workplace conflict. Effective conflict
resolution strategies will remove and eliminate the underlying causes
of conflict and will reduce the potential for recurrence of similar con-
flicts in future. The implications of this, however, are that appropriate
and accurate data on the sources of conflict should emerge, and sec-
ondly, that organizational functionaries and managers acknowledge that
conflict resolution is a shared priority (Kreitner and Kinicki 2000, 43),
which in turn necessitates a greater involvement of all individuals and
groups likely to be effected by the conflict. The fundamental challenge
of conflict management, is to address the identified sources of conflict
effectively and expediently in a manner that will minimise its negative
impact on the workforce (cf. Crawley 1995, 5).
constraints of the current study
AND future research
Notwithstanding the exploratory aims, the findings of the current study
should be interpreted with a measure of caution. In the current study
the range and nature of sources of conflict and its manifestation have
been constrained by the theoretically-inductive approach adopted by
the researchers in conceptualising the sources and effects of workplace
conflict. The results of the principle components analysis suggest that
more potential sources of conflict exist than those reliably extracted.
Continuing research should consequently concentrate on the theoreti-
cal elaboration and refinement of the tentative measures employed in
this study. This should address both the range of potential sources of
conflict, and the item pool which operationalizes such theoretically de-
rived constructs. However, it would be more productive and expedient
to engage in in-depth exploratory qualitative research to supplement the
prevailing understanding of theoretically-derived conflict sources - as
a precursor to elaborating and refining the measurement instruments.
The current study furthermore indicates that reductionistic conceptual-
isations of otherwise elaborate and complex dynamic constructs, such as
sources of organisational conflict, is a material threat.
The exploratory design utilised in the study, while revealing in many
respects, nonetheless imposed constraints which precluded analyses and
observations on causality. Future research should also probe the extent to
which specific sources of conflict contribute to specific response patterns
(experienced impact of conflict), and whether specific types of conflict
(sources) may elicit specific behavioural, emotional and psychological
responses. This points to a need also for more systemic theories of con-
flict that not only reveal causality between antecedent conditions, sources
and experienced effects of conflict, but also adequately account for per-
sonal (e. g. psychological), institutional and broader contextual factors
that relate to the phenomenon of workplace conflict.
Despite these cautions, the findings of this exploratory study nonethe-
less provide pointers and several productive avenues for continuing re-
search on the sources of conflict, which ultimately should contribute
to the emergence of more effective conflict diagnosis and management
strategies.
In closing, the current study - albeit tentative - has raised awareness
of the multifaceted nature of sources of conflict and revealed both uni-
versal and idiosyncratic content in the sources and effects of conflict.
This underscores the importance of maintaining a contextual and sys-
temic frame of mind when conceptualizing and operationalizing sources
of conflict and, indeed, when contemplating the effective resolution of
conflict in organizational settings.
References
Ashley, D., and D. M. Orenstein. 1985. Sociological theory: Classical state-
ments. Boston, ma: Allen and Bacon.
Baron, R. M. 1997. Positive effects of conflict: Insights from social cogni-
tion. In Using conflict in organizations, ed. C. K. W. De Dreu and E.
Van de Vliert, 177-191. London: Sage.
Burnes, B. 2003. Managing change and changing managers from abc to
xyz. Journal of Management Development 22 (7): 627-42.
Chan, Y. H. 2005. Biostatistics 304. Cluster analysis. Singapore Medical
Journal 46 (4): 153-60.
Cohen, J. 1988. Statistical power analysis for the behavioral sciences. Or-
lando, fl: Academic Press.
Crawley, J. 1995. Constructive conflict management. London: Brearly.
Dahrendorf, R. 1976. Class and class conflict in industrial society. London:
Routledge and Kegan Paul.
De Dreu, C. K. W., F. Harinck, and A. E. M. Van Vianen. 1999. Conflict
and performance in groups and organizations. International Review of
Industrial and Organizational Psychology 14:376-405.
De Dreu, C. K. W., D. Van Dierendonck, and M. De Best-Waldhober. 2002.
Conflict at work and individual well-being. In The handbook of work
and health psychology, ed. M. J. Schabracq, C. L. Cooper, and J. A. M.
Winnubst, 495-515. Chichester: Wiley.
Deutsch, M., and P. T. Coleman. 2000. The handbook of conflict resolution.
San Francisco: Jossey-Bass.
The South African Concise Oxford Dictionary. 2002. Cape Town: Oxford
University Press Southern Africa.
Dijkstra, M. T. M. 2006. Workplace conflict and individual well-being.
phü thesis, Univeristy of Amsterdam.
Folger, J. P. 1993. Working through conflict. New York: Harper.
Hair, G. F., R. E. Anderson, R. L. Tatham, and W. C. Black. 1995. Multi-
variate data analysis. Englewood Cliffs, nj: Prentice-Hall.
-. 1998. Multivariate data analysis. 5th ed. Englewood Cliffs, nj:
Prentice-Hall.
Havenga, W. 2002. Conflict management within a local government envi-
ronment. ma dissertation, Potchefstroom University.
-. A comparative analysis of conflict dynamics within private and
public sector organizations. phü thesis, Potchefstroom University.
Hellriegel, D., J. W. Slocum, and R. W. Woodman. 1983. Organizational
behaviour. New York: West.
Holtzhauzen, U. M. 1994. Interpersoonlike konflikhanteringsmetodes van
stedelinge binne die werksituasie. phü thesis, Potchefstroom Univer-
sity.
Jehn, D. A. 1997. A qualitative analysis of conflict types and dimensions in
organization groups. Administrative Science Quarterly 42:530-57.
Jordaan, D. 1993. Konflik en geweld as determinante van arbeidsonrus
by 'n voedselvervaardigings onderneming. phD thesis, Potchefstroom
University.
Kreitner, R., and A. Kinicki. 2001. Organisational behaviour. New York:
McGraw-Hill.
Lopreato, J., and L. E. Hazelrigg. 1972. Class, conflict and mobility: Theories
and studies ofclass structure. San Fransisco: Chandler.
Marx, K. 1965. The class struggle. In Theories of society: Foundations of
modern sociological theory, ed. T. Parsons, E. Shills, K. D. Naegele, and
J. R. Pits, 529-35. New York: Free Press.
Mayer, B. 2000. The dynamics of conflict resolution. San Fransisco: Jossey-
Bass.
Nelson, D., and J. Quick. 2001. Organizational behaviour: Foundations, re-
alities and challenges. Cincinnati, oh: South-Western.
Nunnally, J. C., and I. H. Bernstein. 1994. Psychometric theory. New York:
McGraw-Hill.
Opotow, S. 2000. Aggression and violence. In The handbook of conflict
resolution, ed. M. Deutsch, P. T. and Coleman, 403-27. San Fransisco:
Jossey-Bass.
Rahim, A. 1983. Measurement of organizational conflict. Journal of General
Psychology 109:188-99.
Renwick, P. A. 1975. Perception and management of supervisor-subordinate
conflict. Organisational Behaviour and Human Performance 13:16-22.
Ritzer, G. 1992. Sociological theory: Its development and major paradigms.
New York: McGraw-Hill.
Robbins, S. P. 1998. Organisational behaviour. New York: Simon and
Schuster.
Robbins, S. P., A. Odendaal, and G. Roodt. 2003. Organisational behaviour:
Global and South African Perspectives. Cape Town: Pearson Education.
Rosenthal, R., and R. L. Rosnow. 1991. Essentials of behavioral research:
Methods and data analysis. New York: McGraw-Hill.
Schabracq, M. J., and C. L. Cooper. 2000. The changing nature of work
and stress. Journal of Managerial Psychology 15 (3): 227-41.
Schmidt, S. M., and T. A. Kochan. 1972. Conflict: Toward conceptual clar-
ity. Administrative Science Quarterly 17:359-70.
spss. 2007. spss 16.0 for Windows. Chicago, il: spss.
Stroh, L. K. 2002. Organizational behaviour: A management challenge. Fort
Worth, tx: Dryden.
Turner, J. H. 1991. The structure of sociological theory. Belmont, ca: Wads-
worth.
Valentine, J. C., and H. Cooper. 2003. Effect size substantive interpretation
guidelines: Issues in interpretation of effect sizes. Washington, De: What
Works Clearinghouse.
Van Aarde, M. C. 1991. Konflikbestuur: Die verband tussen deelnemende
ingrepe, konflikpotensiaal en konflikmanifestasie. ma dissertation,
University of Johannesburg.
Van de Vliert, E. 1996. Interventions in conflicts. In Handbook of work and
health psychology, ed. M. J. Schabruen, J. A. M. Winnbust, and C. L.
Cooper, 351-376. New York: Wiley.
Vakola, M., I. Tsaousis, and I. Nikolaou. 2004. The role of emotional in-
telligence and personality variables on attitudes toward organisational
change. Journal ofManagerial Psychology 19 (2): 88-110.
Van Tonder, C. L. 2000. Organization identity: Exploring a 'new' avenue
for intervention and performance improvement. Paper presented at
the 2000 AHRD Conference, Raleigh-Durham, N0.
-. 2006. Change risk and ignorance: Attempting to cross chasms in
small steps. sa Journal of Human Resource Management 4 (3): 1-11.
-. 2007a. Exploring the meaning of ethical organisational change:
Initial practice perspectives. African Journal of Business Ethics 2 (1): 28-
39.
-. 2007b. Profiling the shifting shapes of change. Paper presented at
the 7th International Conference on Knowledge, Culture and Change
in Organisations, Singapore.
-. 2008. od: Contemporary challenges and emerging issues. In Or-
ganisation development: Theory and practice, ed. C. L. van Tonder and
G. Roodt. Pretoria: Van Schaik.
Van Tonder, C. L., and B. C. Lessing. 2003. From identity to organisation
identity: The evolution of a concept. sa Journal of Industrial Psychol-
ogy 29 (2): 20-8.
Vecchio, R. P. 2000. Organisational behaviour. New York: Dryden.
Wall, J. A., Jr., and R. R. Callister. 1995. Conflict and its management. Jour-
nal of Management 21:515-58.
Weider-Hatfield, D., and J. D. Hatfield. 1995. Relationships among conflict
management styles, levels of conflict, and reactions to work. Journal of
Social Psychology 135 (6): 687-98.
Williams, K. Y., and C. A. O'Reilly III. 1998. Demography and diversity in
organizations: A review of 40 years of research. Research in Organiza-
tional Behavior 20:77-140.