Page 174 - DMGT519_Conflict Management and Negotiation Skills

Conflict Management and Negotiation Skills

Notes 4. Feedback on performance
5. Participation in goal setting is important – goals need to be agreed
6. As long as they are accepted – demanding goals lead to better performance than easy goals

Reactance Theory

1. Brehm
2. Individuals are not passive receivers but responders
3. They seek to reduce uncertainty by seeking control about factors influencing rewards

Equity Theory

1. Adams
2. Perceptions people have about how they are being treated as compared with others
3. Involves feelings and perceptions, is always a comparative process
4. People will work better if they are treated equitably
5. Two forms of equity:
(a) Distributive: fairness people feel they are rewarded in accordance with their
contribution and in comparison with others
(b) Procedural: perceptions of employees about fairness of company procedures
6. We hope/expect that the inputs we give into our job equal the outputs we get.

8.11 McClelland’s Need Theory

McClelland was intrigued by the thought of human needs and the reasons why one is successful.
Before him though, Henry Murray had laid out most of the groundwork and made lists of
motives and manifest needs. (H.A. Murray, 1938). McClelland took those ideas and organized
them into three main categories of learned human behavior, which were called the manifest
needs. The three main needs are the need for achievement, the need for power, and the need for
affiliation. Each need is different for each person and varies throughout individuals. Sometimes
it’s for the better and sometimes for the worse.
The need for achievement is important in the fact that those with a higher need for it will
ultimately become more successful. People with this high need are very concerned with doing
their best work and setting goals to help them get there. If one does not have a high need for
achievement, there is usually a lack in motivation which can be detrimental not only in the
workplace, but also in ones’ personal life as well.
Next is the need for power. McClelland makes a very important distinction between socialized
power and personalized power. Socialized power is normally benefiting to a group of people,
benefiting to others, while personalized power is selfish and can be very destructive and self-
consuming. With that in mind socialized power can be very helpful in the business area,
specifically with managers. When a manager craves socialized power he is looking out for the
benefit of the company and wants everything to be done correctly and quickly and in turn
success is achieved. These type of managers themselves are also more likely to be promoted
when a higher up member of the organization sees the hard work and influence the manager has
made on employees.
Last is the need for affiliation. The need for affiliation mostly deals with interpersonal
relationships. People with a high need for it expect a more personalized relationship with
everyone; such as people sharing their wants needs and feelings while the person will do the

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