The Paradox and Dialectical Perspective of Organization Conflict Management:Towards a New Strategic Framework for the Integration of China and the West
Paradox and dialectical theory provide an effective perspective to understand the contradictions in complex environment.This article tries to elaborate the differences and similarities between the two perspectives and complementarity,introducing ancient and modern thought of dialectics theory to compare the theory system to construct a typology of integration of Chinese and western model,to improve the understanding of contradiction management of the real world,promoting the high quality and sustainable development of the organization(or country).Firstly,the paper combs the philosophical foundation,conceptual connotation and research progress of paradox and dialectical theory.On the philosophical basis,western management scholars call for the introduction of Eastern philosophy to promote the study of organizational paradox and dialectics.Ancient China has a centuries-old tradition of dialectical thinking and philosophical wisdom,such as YinYang and the doctrine of the mean;In modern and contemporary China,there are dialectical philosophical thoughts such as Marxism-Leninism,Mao Zedong thought and so all.Secondly,the paper compares the logical differences and relations between the concepts of dialectic,paradox and contradiction in western management theories.This paper introduces the respective research progress of paradox and dialectical theory,as well as the integrated research between the two theory perspectives,with emphasis on the H-V framework of Hargrave and Van de Ven(2017),which serves as the theoretical basis for this study.Thirdly,combining Chinese dialectical theory and local situation,a new framework of actors'perception of contradictions and coping strategy types is proposed,which adds four new types compared with H-V framework:"cooperation in confrontation","Harmony but not flow","breaking then setting"and"fighting but not breaking".The corresponding strategic process of organizational conflict management is proposed.In order to further deepen the understanding of the new framework of conflict cognition and coping strategy at the organizational level,this paper chooses Huawei's"Competition and cooperation between friends","resignation and reemployment of the Marketing Department","entropy reduction"movement and"coping with sanctions and repression"as cases to explain the newly expanded quadrants respectively.The contradictory focus of the case involves the elements of strategy,human resources,organization,competitors and other modules in the revised TPC.On the basis of existing studies,this study attempts to further summarize the dynamic system process of leaders'cognition,judgment and strategic management in complex situations based on the new framework of actors'contradictory cognition and coping strategies.First,executives must have insight into the internal and external environment of the organization,analyze the relationship between different environmental factors and their impact on the organization and identify the possible contradictions related to the organization.Secondly,the basic contradictions of the organization are identified among the many contradictions.Third,go back to the present and identify the strategic contradictions in the current stage.Fourth,the contradiction identification will trigger the organization's contradiction management actions,and the corresponding management action strategies are to reasonably choose the strategies.Fifth,strategy execution,performance results and long-term development.Finally,we consider some potential implications and prospects for the research on the local contradiction management in China.This paper calls for the re-excavation of the relationship between contradiction management and Chinese traditional philosophy,Advocating the theory of comprehensive cultural innovation and"adhere to cultural confidence","tell Chinese stories well".Future points are shown below:the research on organizational change and development focusing on the evolution of key contradictions,contradiction management process model from the perspective of paradox and dialectical integration and research on national competition and contradiction management under the complex environment of globalization.
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