Understanding the conflict management repertoire of Chinese Singaporean women

This study examines the conflict management repertoire of Chinese Singaporean women. It seeks to develop a contextualized understanding of conflict management in an Asian context. Two research questions were raised: (Q1) How do Chinese Singaporean professional women resolve conflicts in family and professional contexts? (Q2) To what extent is their conflict management repertoire governed by Confucian values such as harmony and respect for seniority?; Multiple in-depth interviews were conducted with Singaporean women staying in the United States and in Singapore. The grounded theory approach was used to analyze the interview data. The analysis revealed that a variety of conflict tactics ranging from confrontational to engaging an intermediary was used in different social contexts. The study further explained that the heterogeneous conflict management repertoire of the women reflected a complex set of value systems embedded in the Singaporean society.