A MULTIMETHOD EXAMINATION OF THE BENEFITS AND DETRIMENTS OF INTRAGROUP CONFLICT

This study examines the structure of 105 work groups and management te ams to address the question of whether conflict can be beneficial. Mul tiple methods were used to examine the effects of conflict on both ind ividual- and group-level variables to provide a more refined model of intragroup conflict. Results show that whether conflict was beneficial depended on the type of conflict and the structure of the group in te rms of task type, task interdependence, and group norms. Relationship and task conflicts were negatively associated with individuals' satisf action, liking of other group members, and intent to remain in the gro up. In groups performing very routine tasks, disagreements about the t ask were detrimental to group functioning. In contrast, in groups perf orming nonroutine tasks, disagreements about the tasks did not have a detrimental effect, and in some cases, such disagreements were actuall y beneficial. Contrary to expectations, norms encouraging open discuss ion of conflict were not always advantageous. The results suggest that while such norms were associated with an increase in the number and i ntensity of relationship conflicts, they did not increase members' abi lity to deal with the conflicts constructively. The model developed he re contributes to an integrated perspective on organizational conflict .