Conflict & conflict resolution
Conflict can occur in any environment. It typically starts when one party feels that another party has harmed them or something they feel strongly about. Sometimes differences in culture can lead to misunderstandings between people and bring people towards conflict.
Your ability to identify and then resolve potential issues depends on your understanding of your volunteers. The groundwork for this is based on how you’ve undertaken the other areas of consideration in this module.
For example, think about how your volunteers communicate. Are they direct and speak their mind, or do they avoid confrontation preferring instead to maintain ‘face’. This will influence how you approach a situation.
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TIP – ‘Face’ is a concept that exists in some form or another in many cultures and places importance on maintaining social cohesion over confrontation.
Try to get involved at the early stages of a conflict so it doesn’t escalate. Use your understanding of your volunteers to navigate through the issues. Remember:
Avoid judgment and be an active listener.
Come in with genuine interest and care, if you make a mistake, acknowledge it.
When in conflict situations, remain calm and try not to judge people based on your own perceptions.
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TIP – Be aware of your volunteer’s legal rights. Volunteer Australia have developed a checklist to help with this. If you have specific questions, Justice Connect provides legal support for non-profits.
Your organisation will have a policy for dispute handling which you should follow, and it will guide you on the next steps to take if you are unable to initially resolve any issue.