The effect of implementing conflict management program on the rate of job conflict and nurses' conflict resolution styles

Conflict is a phenomenon that has positive and negative effects on the performance of individuals and organizations. This study aimed to investigate the effect of implementing a conflict management program on job conflict and nurses' conflict resolution styles.

This experimental-interventional and before-after study was performed on 60 nurses in the Kamyab Hospital of Mashhad, Iran, in 2020. A conflict management workshop was held for the intervention group for 6 hours. Then, one week after the workshop, two intra-departmental sessions were held. In both intervention and control groups, Dubrin Job Conflict Questionnaires and Thomas-Kilman conflict mode instrument were completed at the beginning, fifteen days, and one month after the end of the inpatient sessions. Data were analyzed using SPSS software version 16.

Fifteen days and one month after the intervention, the mean score of job conflict in the intervention group significantly decreased compared to the control group and before the intervention (p = 0.003, p = 0.008, and p<0.001, respectively). Implementing a conflict management program increased the tendency to use a collaborative style compared to the control group (p = 0.02). Tendency to this style in the intervention group increased fifteen days and one month after the workshop compared to before the course (p <0.001).

Findings showed that the implementation of conflict management programs for nurses leads to a reduction in job conflicts among them. Further studies are suggested to explain the role of conflict management program implementation in the functioning of the health system.