Conflict Management in the Academy: An Exploration of the Issues.
Conflict appears to be a universal characteristic of human associations. It is difficult to imagine either simple or complex relationships which are not in part defined by the nature of the conflicts which test and vitalize the bonds people form with each other. At the same time, it is difficult to accept conflict as a natural and inevitable condition. It is an uncomfortable condition; one for which the natural tendency is to seek a resolution. As a matter of fact, Coser [6] makes a case to the effect that the behavioral sciences-particularly sociology-long treated conflict as a pathological phenomenon, as evidence of a sickness to be rooted out and cured. Modern theoretical work tends rather to hold that conflict is a naturally occurring phenomenon, one which serves not only positive but irreplaceable social functions. It is surprising that in the literature on higher education there is little work which can legitimately be said to treat conflict in the latter sense. Rather, there is a pervasive emphasis, either implicit or explicit, upon ways in which to reduce, eliminate, or deny the manifestation of conflict in the academy. Blame is placed at the feet of radical students, cosmopolitan faculty, insensitive bureaucrats, populist legislatures, and others. But no one would seriously