Conflict resolution under the COVID-19 pandemic

Purpose This paper aims to analyze conflict resolution strategies among individuals who encountered disputes with family, neighbors, workmates, businesses, strangers, government authorities or other members in their communities during the COVID-19 pandemic. Design/methodology/approach Applying a difference-in-difference approach by sex, the authors use a representative panel of adults living in 82 cities from across Mexico to measure changes in antisocial strategies (violence) and prosocial strategies (non-confrontational methods and dialogue) to resolve disputes. Findings During the COVID-19 pandemic, men reduced their use of violence by 19.6% while women did so by 17.4%. There was a parallel rise in non-confrontational strategies used to solve conflicts equal to 73.6% for men and 62% for women. The use of dialogue as a tool for resolving disputes increased by more in cities that banned the sale of alcohol. Alternative Twitter data corroborates the main findings, suggesting that individuals are becoming more prosocial during the pandemic. Originality/value To the knowledge, this is the first empirical study to analyze changes in strategies for conflict resolution as a consequence of the COVID-19 pandemic. This paper contributes to the literature by demonstrating how individuals adapt their dispute strategies under extraordinary circumstances such as a pandemic, with a focus on a middle-income setting.

Model of Flexibility in the Conceptual Evolution of Multiplicative Comparison

Background: Proportionality is a paramount topic in students' mathematical literacy. In this topic, it is fundamental to understand the multiplicative comparison and the flexible use of the concepts of ratio and proportion. Objectives: To analyse the articulation between concepts, resolution strategies, and representations used by students, supported by numerical relationships and properties of operations to characterise a model of the conceptual evolution of multiplicative comparison. Design: Research based design. Setting and participants: Two mathematics teachers teaching 6th grade (11-12-year-old students) and their 38 (18 + 20) students during the lessons in which five assignments were explored. Data collection and analysis: The data includes the transcription of the video recordings of the classes and the students' written productions. The data were successively revisited and condensed to identify and illustrate the aspects that make up the model of the conceptual evolution of multiplicative comparison. Results: The construction of the concept of multiplicative comparison prevails in the work in two spaces of measurement and in the exploration of the multiplicative relationship between the corresponding quantities within each one. Resolution strategies are first non-quantitative and become quantitative, initially with additive and then multiplicative characteristics. The representations are based on the ratio as a fraction, on the double number line, and on the table of ratios, being supported by numerical relationships and properties of operations. Conclusions: The results elucidate, adjust, and illustrate a theoretical model related to the evolution of the multiplicative comparison in two spaces of measurement.

Workplace conflict and employees’ job performance in Agro-services Corporation, Ogun State, Nigeria

The study determined the effects of workplace conflict on employees’ job performance in Ogun State Agro-service Corporation (OGASC). Multistage sampling technique was used to select 77 respondents. Data were collected through the administration of questionnaires and were analysed using frequency, percentage, and mean. The presence of functional staff union to minimize conflict (x̅ = 2.99) ranked as the first indication of reduced conflict, followed by existence of favouritism (x̅ = 2.51) which was ranked highest as an indication of conflict escalating factor by the respondents. Job performance of the respondents was not adversely affected by the workplace conflict they experienced. Therefore, the management of OGASC should ensure improvement in the deployment of the used resolution strategies to drastically reduce conflict for better performance of the employees.

Analysis of Conflict Resolution Strategies of Head Teachers: Teachers’ Perspective

Conflict managing has become a center of gravity of human activities in these days. Head teachers should be well aware how to resolve conflict among staff members. So, the study was designed to analyze how head teachers can resolve conflict among staff members and was there any significance difference between male and female head teachers’ conflict resolving strategies. Survey method was used to investigate conflict resolving strategies of the head teachers. Bahawalpur was the population of the study. Convenient sampling technique was used to select sample. Self-constructed instrument was applied to collect data. Questionnaire was consist of five types of parameters i-e integrating conflict, obliging conflict, dominating conflict, avoidance conflict and compromising conflict. The major finding of the study was that majority of the head teachers exercise integrating conflict resolution strategies to resolve conflict. Major part of the head teachers adopted obliging conflict resolution strategies to resolve the conflict. Mainstream of head teachers used dominating conflict resolving strategies to resolve conflict. Majority of the head teachers exercise dominating conflict resolving strategies. Greater part of the respondents agreed that head teachers adopted compromising conflict resolving strategies to resolve conflict among staff members. Gender wise comparison indicates that there was a significance difference between male and female head teachers to use the conflict resolution strategies at secondary level.