by Cindy Shanks

Created on: October 26, 2009   Last Updated: October 27, 2009

Conflict is when there is a disagreement about something that triggers off a reaction. It is all around us. On a global scale conflict causes wars, in families there are divorces and in communities there are demonstrations or fights. The workplace is no exception. How do they begin in the workplace? The main reasons explained in further detail below are:

*Personality Clashes

*Gossip

*Stereotypes

*Mistakes

*Failed relationships

By analyzing the cause then managers can find their own strategies to resolve the problem.

*Personality Clashes

People clash often when they have similar personalities or have a completely different way of working to their colleagues. One employee who is opinionated or bossy working with someone else with the same kind of temperament may cause friction because they are trying to "outdo" each other all the time. Likewise if both colleagues are shy, preferring to work behind the scenes and one pushes the other to do a job they don't like such as speaking directly to the managers or customers then conflicts occur.

If two people have completely different working styles then this may cause tension because one colleague may want tasks done in a particular format and complain about someone else who does the task completely differently. This will inevitably lead to unrest and dissatisfaction in the work place. With a clash of wills there could be disputes.

Gossip

Gossip in the workplace whether what is being said is true or false can be very destructive. If an employee tells someone from his team something in confidence and this is gossiped about then a great deal of hurt and mistrust can be caused. The person who has been gossiped about may feel uneasy sharing anything with another colleague again.

Gossip causes rejection. If a person is being talked about, perhaps it is bout clothes, relationships or working style, then this person may feel rejected by the rest of the team and become a loner in the office. This can lead to conflict in several ways. If the gossip is malicious rumors and people believe they are true then that person could be treated unfairly based on false information. This could lead to retaliation, unrest and worst of all unwillingness to work with certain people. This causes problems because then the company isn't working as part of a team and becomes isolated and less efficient.

Stereotypes

Stereotypes or prejudices about people because of their gender, religious beliefs, color or sexuality can cause huge problems in the

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