Date of Degree

12-2012

Document Type

Dissertation

Degree Name

Doctor of Philosophy (PhD)

Program

Education

Advisor

Judith Beauford

Advisor

Annette Craven

Advisor

Absael Antelo

Abstract

The purpose of this quantitative study is to investigate the conflict management styles in an HBCU and HSI community college and how gender, power position, age, educational level, and ethnicity influence conflict management. A convenience sample of 80 administrators and 220 subordinates completed an electronic demographic survey and the Rahim Organizational Conflict Inventory-II measuring conflict management styles— integrating, obliging, dominating, avoiding, and compromising. Nahavandi’s (2003) transformational approach to leadership which is sister to the Leader-Member Exchange (LMX) Theory approach emphasizes the importance of developing and maintaining relationships between leaders and followers. Main findings showed differences in conflict management styles between power positions. The whole community college scored highest in both integrating and compromising conflict management styles, with administrators scoring higher than subordinates. The integrating and compromising environment within the institution was more influential than the expected conflict management styles related to gender, age, educational level, and ethnicity.

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