CONFLICT MANAGEMENT STRATEGIES AND ACADEMIC STAFF PRODUCTIVITY: A STUDY OF SELECTED PUBLIC AND PRIVATE UNIVERSITIES IN SOUTH-WEST NIGERIAudud

摘要

This study examined the effect of conflict management strategies on academic staff productivity. It employed mixed method approach using Rahim Organizational Conflict Inventory (ROC I-II) questionnaire; while structured in-depth interviews were carried out eliciting the opinions of Nigerian University stakeholders such as ASUU members, government representatives, management and academic staff from both public and private universities. The study employed both Rahim and Bonoma’s theory of handling interpersonal conflict, and the contingency theory to explain the variations in conflict management strategies adopted by the parties involved in a conflict. The general objective of the study was to examine the strategies used in managing conflicts in selected Nigerian universities and the effect of such strategies on the productivity of the academic staff. Five specific objectives were examined. Data for the research were obtained from both primary and secondary sources. Primary data were obtained through questionnaires and in-depth interviews. Three hundred and sixty-eight (368) copies of questionnaire were administered to the academic staff of the selected public and private universities and the data were gathered and collated for analysis. For the data analysis, both descriptive and inferential statistical techniques were employed. The result revealed that conflict management strategies have a significant effect on academic staff productivity. However, the type of university moderates the effect of conflict management strategies on productivity. The study also revealed that the efficacy of conflict management strategies is contingent upon the issues or situation at hand as well as the parties involved. The study, therefore, recommends that academic staff should ensure that they make valuable contributions that will help the university management find lasting solutions to conflicts that may arise while the government is encouraged to continue to embrace openness, dialogue and other multi-dimensional approaches to industrial relations. Further research is recommended in exploring other geo-political regions in Nigeria and also harnessing the views of other stakeholders such as the students, parents, graduates and employers of labour on conflict, and its effect on productivity within the university system. It is further recommended that the moderating effect of gender, leadership style and personality traits on the relationship between conflict management strategies and productivity should be ascertained