PHYSICS PROBLEM SOLVING

(^) unknown forces...find them!” If member EW wanted to confront SV in open conflict, he
could have said, “Shut up, I know what I’m doing!” Instead he responds, “What are the
unknown forces on the board? OK, so we have...” That is, direct conflict is avoided. If
EW was upset with SV’s attitude, he does not give any verbal or non-verbal cues that this
is the case. Why does any group in this study avoid conflict?
The reluctance of one group member to challenge another group member is
conflict avoidance. Johnson and Tjosvold (1989, pp. 47-48) give three reasons for
conflict avoidance:
[First] “There is insufficient knowledge and understanding of the procedures
involved in controversy and the advantages and potentially constructive
outcomes that can result from disag reements...”
“The second reason is that most organizational personnel seem to lack the
interpersonal skills and competencies needed to stimulate controversy and
ensure that it is managed constructively.”
(^) “Thirdly, the discussion of conflicting ideas may not be a standard and common
practice within decision-making and problem-solving situations due to fear and
anxiety most people seem to fear in conflict situations. A general feeling in our
society is that conflicts are bad and should be avoided, and consequently many
people believe that an effective orgconflicts among members.” anization is one in which there are no
The avoidance of conflict has been discussed at great lengths in the social
psychology literature (cf. Deutsch, 1965; 1973). The overwhelming impression is that
people generally do whatever is necessary to avoid direct conflict, particularly when the
goal of a group of people is cooperation and they are in a classroom setting. When I
discussed conflict avoidance with a colleague who teaches interpersonal communication,
he mentioned the interesting idea that the more cohesive a group, the greater the tendency
to engage in “conflict” (Gaskill, 1995; Barker, Wahlers, & Watson, 1995). I do not