HCBE Faculty Articles
Resolving organizational peer conflict via integrative behaviors: the role of trust and informational support
ORCID
Randi L. Sims0000-0001-5671-1045
,Tais Barreto0000-0001-7600-8314
,Katelynn M. Sell0009-0001-5841-9854
,Eleanor Lawrence0000-0002-9700-2218
Researcher ID
GCL-0558-2022
Document Type
Article
Publication Title
International Journal of Conflict Management
ISSN
1044-4068
Publication Date
10-3-2023
Abstract/Excerpt
Purpose
The purpose of this study is to investigate the role of trust, informational support and integrative behaviors in the effective outcomes of peer conflict in the workplace.
Design/methodology/approach
Deidentified secondary data were provided by a human resource management company that offers conflict resolution training. The authors studied a sample of 815 supervisors and middle-level managers (51% female; average age = 40) who reported their primary work experience was in the USA. Each respondent described a workplace conflict with a peer. A regression-based bootstrapping technique was used to test the hypothesized relationships between the constructs of trust, informational support, integrative behaviors and effective outcomes in peer conflict.
Findings
The relationship between trust and the use of integrative behaviors during peer conflict is conditional on the availability of informational support, such that those who solicit a third party’s views are more likely to exhibit integrative behaviors during the conflict under study, even at relatively lower levels of trust in the conflict relationship.
Originality/value
In this study, the authors add to social interdependence theory and the role of integrative behaviors by proposing the importance of interpersonal trust and informational support, which may reduce uncertainty during peer conflict. The authors also extend existing literature on cooperation, cooperative approaches to managing conflict and integrative behaviors in the workplace by examining peer-to-peer organizational conflict.
DOI
https://doi.org/10.1108/IJCMA-05-2023-0084
Volume
35
Issue
3
First Page
471
Last Page
487
NSUWorks Citation
Sims, Randi L.; Barreto, Tais S.; Sell, Katelynn; Lawrence, Eleanor; and Seymour, Paul, "Resolving organizational peer conflict via integrative behaviors: the role of trust and informational support" (2023). HCBE Faculty Articles. 1177.
https://nsuworks.nova.edu/hcbe_facarticles/1177
