A contingency perspective on the study of the consequences of conflict types: The role of organizational culture

Abstract

The potential positive or negative consequence of relationship conflict versus task conflict for group members and organizations continues to be a controversial topic. Whereas a certain amount of agreement exists on the negative consequences of relationship conflict, the evidence for task conflict is not as conclusive. This has led some authors (De Dreu & Weingart, 2003a, 2003b) to propose a contingency perspective. This article continues this approach and analyses the influence of types of conflict on group members' satisfaction and well-being, considering the moderating role that organizational culture plays in this relationship. Two types of service organization have been studied: private organizations with a high goal-oriented culture, and public organizations with a low goal-oriented culture. Results show that (a) relationship conflict decreases both public and private workers' job satisfaction and affective well-being; (b) task conflicts decrease private organization workers' satisfaction and affective well-being, while this dysfunctional effect is absent in public organizations; (c) goal orientation culture moderates the effect of task conflict in private organizations; and (d) support orientation culture moderates the effect of task conflict in public organizations.

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

The authors would like to thank Carsten de Dreu and Bianca Beersma for their helpful comments on an early version of this manuscript.