The Interplay between Internal and External Conflict: Managing Conflict between and within Teams for Trust in China

28 Pages Posted: 12 Jul 2006

See all articles by Paul S. Hempel

Paul S. Hempel

City University of Hong Kong (CityU) - Department of Management Sciences

Dean Tjosvold

Lingnan University, Hong Kong

Zhi‐Xue Zhang

Peking University - Guanghua School of Management

Abstract

Trusting relationships are increasingly considered vital for making teams productive but within organizations team members confront many obstacles and pressures that can interfere. This study proposes, in contrast to traditional theorizing about Chinese values, that the cooperative management of conflict can help Chinese team members deal with incompatibilities so that they become convinced that their teammates are trustworthy. Results also support the theorizing that the how teams manage conflict with each other affects within team conflict management. Specifically, the structural equation analysis supported the reasoning that cooperative conflict between teams helps teams manage their internal conflicts cooperatively that in turns builds trust. Results were interpreted as providing support for the universalistic aspirations of the theory of cooperation and competition and that managing conflict cooperatively is a foundation for strong trusting relationships in China as well as in the West.

Keywords: Chinese values, competitive conflict, cooperative conflict, relationships, teamwork

Suggested Citation

Hempel, Paul S. and Tjosvold, Dean and Zhang, Zhi-Xue, The Interplay between Internal and External Conflict: Managing Conflict between and within Teams for Trust in China. IACM 2006 Meetings Paper, Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=913725 or http://dx.doi.org/10.2139/ssrn.913725

Paul S. Hempel (Contact Author)

City University of Hong Kong (CityU) - Department of Management Sciences ( email )

Hong Kong

Dean Tjosvold

Lingnan University, Hong Kong ( email )

Tuen Mun
Hong Kong
852 2616 8324 (Phone)
852 2467 0982 (Fax)

HOME PAGE: http://www.ln.edu.hk/mgt/staff/tjosvold

Zhi-Xue Zhang

Peking University - Guanghua School of Management ( email )

Peking University
Beijing, Beijing 100871
China