Conventional wisdom about conflict seems pretty much cut and

dried. Too little conflict breeds apathy and stagnation. Too much

conflict leads to divisiveness and hostility. Moderate levels of conflict,

therefore, can spark creativity and motivate people in a healthy and 【M1】_________

competitive way.

Recent research by Professor Charles R. Schwenk, however,

suggests that the optimal level of conflict may be complex to determine 【M2】_________

than these simple generalizations. He studied perceptions of conflict

among a sample of executives. Some of the executives worked for profit-

seeking organizations and others for non-profit organizations.

Somewhat surprised, Schwenk found that opinions about conflict 【M3】_________

varied systematically as a function of the type of organization.

Specifically, managers in non-profit organizations strongly believed that

conflict was beneficial to their organizations and that they promoted 【M4】_________

higher quality decision-making than what might be achieved at the 【M5】_________

absence of conflict.

Managers of for-profit organizations saw a different picture. They

believed that conflict generally was damaging and usually led to good 【M6】_________

quality decision-making in their organizations. Schwenk interpreted

these results in the terms of the criteria for effective decision-making 【M7】_________

suggested by the executives. In the profit-seeking organizations,

decision-making effectiveness was mostly often assessed in financial 【M8】_________

terms. The executives believed that consensus other than conflict 【M9】_________

enhanced financial indicators.

In the non-profit organizations, decision-making effectiveness was

defined from the perspective of satisfying constituents. Giving the 【M10】________

complexities and ambiguities associated with satisfying many diverse

constituents, executives perceived that conflict led to more considered

and acceptable decisions.

【M10】