Different Kinds of Conflict
- Conflicts between two people are known as relationship conflicts. These conflicts typically involve mis-communication and disagreements. For instance, a couple may be in conflict because one person wants to have a baby and the other does not. In literature, a relationship conflict is typically known as man versus man, meaning that one person stands in opposition to a single other person. These conflicts often involve enemies rather than friends, but can involve any two people in conflict.
- Data conflict involves a lack or information or information which invalidates other information that was believed to be true. For example, if you want to change the prices on items your store sells but lack information about the prices of competitors, you have a data conflict. If you are a scientific researcher who finds that people react differently in one study than another study that tested the same behavior, you have a data conflict. Data conflicts are not often found as a main point in literature, except in stories based around solving mysteries, such as detective novels.
- Conflicts of interest typically resolve around psychological, procedural or substantive issues. Psychological conflicts of interest occur when one party is unable to be impartial. For example, if a lawyer is friends with the judge, there is a conflict of interest because the judge is likely to side in favor of his friend. Procedural conflicts occur when people argue about the best way to solve a problem or when different methods help different people. For example, two police officers may debate whether they should interrogate or investigate. A substantive conflict involves resources, such as money or time. For example, two friends both want to buy the same discounted car so they can save money.
- In literature, a structural conflict is known as man versus society. With structural conflict, one person faces opposition from a larger organization. For example, a doctor may want to treat a patient, but the hospital will not allow him to admit the patient due to a lack of health insurance. Other conflicts involve physical constraints. For example, a woman may want to visit a friend during lunch but lacks the time to travel to her friend's office. If the conflict involves natural disasters, it is known as a man versus nature conflict. This includes stories of the apocalypse, captains fighting heavy seas or people who must journey through a desert.
- Value conflicts involve one person whose values do not align with the values of another person or organization. For example, two friends may disagree with the morality of the killing of animals for food. In many cases, people with value conflicts can happily interact. If the conflict is too extreme, the people may resent each other. If a person is in conflict with his own values, this is known as a man versus self conflict. For example, a man may want to cheat at a poker game but he worries that his actions are immoral.