Intrapersonal Conflict Essay

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The word “conflict” comes from the Latin word conflictus, which means collision or clash. Nevertheless, considerable disagreement exists over how to define conflict. Many attempts to define conflict in a way that best sums up its major aspects have been made. People who work in the field continue to work on developing definitions of conflicts according to their various features. For example, definitions exist based on the major causes of conflict, such as material resources, power, values or feelings. There are also definitions based on the nature of the conflict parties, such as individuals, organisations or states. These definitions have developed along with what is today known as conflict theory, taking into account newly emerging practices …show more content…

There are several sub-types of intrapersonal conflict. Intrapersonal conflict can be seen as a person’s inability to make a decision, as an inner fight between good and evil (moral), or as the gap between reality and ambition. The seriousness of an intrapersonal conflict can range from not being able to make up your mind over whether to eat pizza or a sandwich for dinner, to whether to join a militant group or a peace organisation. Intrapersonal conflicts are not necessarily negative. Intrapersonal conflicts are also a sign that a person is experiencing some sort of personal growth. An individual’s inner struggle shows that a process of reflection is taking …show more content…

These conflicts often take place in organisations (for example, a conflict between the representative of the union and the management in a particular factory over working hours), or in educational institutions (between lecturers and students, or between the class and a single student in the class).

Intrasociety conflicts: intrasociety conflicts or social conflicts most often refer to conflicts of a larger scale that have a strong public resonance. For example, these include confrontations between the ruling political elite and the opposition, or between the government and NGOs on issues of social importance. It can be difficult to make distinctions between intergroup conflicts and intrasociety conflicts. For example, conflicts between the top management of a big company and a trade union over pay conditions for employees might at first sight seem like a simple intergroup conflict.

International/global conflicts: these include conflicts between nation states, global and regional competition over natural resources, conflicts in various international organisations over political issues, armed interventions involving significant loss of life, ethnic or religious conflicts, wars for self-determination and/or the creation of new
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