CONFLICT IN THE MANAGEMENT OF EDUCATION, BUSINESS, AND MILITARY PROJECTS: A COMPARATIVE STUDY

This study compared conflict intensities, sources of conflict during the four project life cycle phases, and conflict resolution methods of project managers in education to previously conducted studies in business and the military.;Instrumentation for the current context was based upon seven conflict sources (Schedule, Cost, Personality, Specifications, Administrative Procedures, Priorities, and Manpower Resources) and five resolution modes (Compromise, Smoothing, Confrontation, Forcing and Withdrawing) developed initially for the business study and utilized in the military study.;Data from the education context was collected by mail survey to project directors of completed ESEA Title III (IVc) projects. Of the initial 376 project directors surveyed, usable responses from 247 were analyzed. The data analysis was patterned from the business study.;Results were compared with both data from the study in the business context and from the study in the military context by Eschmann and Lee, "Conflict in Civilian and Air Force Program/Project Organizations; A Comparative Study" (Unpublished Master's Thesis, School of Systems and Logistics, Air Force Institute and Technology (AU), Wright-Patterson AFB, Ohio, 1977). Statistical significance tests were made by use of Kruskal-Wallis H and analysis of variance.;The basic design of the study was a replication of a study conducted by Thamhain and Wilemon in the business context, "Conflict Management in Project Life Cycles" (Sloan Management Review), Spring 1975, 16 (3), 35-50).;The findings indicated that project managers in education, business, and the military encounter statistically significant differences of mean intensities of conflict for seven potential sources of conflict over the entire project life cycle. Intensities of conflict for project managers were highest for business, followed by military, and lowest for education. Rank orders of the seven conflict intensities were significantly different statistically for the three environmental contexts. Business ranked conflict over Schedules highest, military ranked Priorities highest, while educators ranked Personality the highest.;Rank orders of the measures of relative intensity of conflict for the seven potential sources of conflict during each of the four life cycle phases of a project were significantly different statistically for project managers in education, business, and the military. No statistically significant differences of the rank orders of the percentage of project managers preferring or rejecting particular resolution methods in education, business, and the military was found. The rank order of preferred methods of conflict resolution of Confrontation, Smoothing, Compromise, Withdrawal, and Forcing was substantially similar.;Based on the findings, three principal conclusions were drawn. The intensity of conflict for project managers appears to vary by environmental context. Second, project managers of the three contexts as groups preferred similar methods for handling conflict when it occurred. Third, project managers in the three environments perceive different levels and sources of conflict overall and for the project life cycle phases.