This assignment is intended to assess the ability of students to do the followin

This assignment is intended
to assess the ability of students to do the followin
g:
1.     identify and describe types of interpersonal conflict.
2.     compare and contrast various methods for managing conflict.
3.     identify and describe destructive and productive
behaviors people exhibit when in conflict; and apply appropriate concepts towards
the goal of making recommendations for approaching conflict more effectively.
Using the material from the
textbook, you must write a 5 – 7-page essay (approximately) in which you
provide an analysis on a specific scene or moment of conflict, 2 – 5 minutes or
so of verbal conflict (approximately), not the entire show or movie.  You may refer to any idea from the text, use Chapters 6, 2, and 8 in your textbook
as the primary text-based resources for responding to this assignment, and as a
guide for how to apply the concepts identified in the sections below to a film
or television show of your own choosing. 
You must consider what film
or TV show might function well as a way to perform a case study of
interpersonal conflict between two characters in the film using conceptual
material in the textbook as the basis for your analysis.  Analyze the communicative behavior of the
people in a conflict episode based upon the following topics and conceptual
areas, and write your paper accordingly: 
1.     If conflict occurs
between people during interaction, where there are real or perceived incompatible goals, scarce resources, or opposing
views.  Identify and describe
which of these factors (and there could be more than one) the conflict appears
to be about. Define what conflict is through your example, and describe what
each person is doing and saying to make the conflict as being situated in incompatible
goals, scarce resources, or opposing views?
2.     Identify, define, and describe which conflict
style or styles each participant seems to engage in most consistently
(describe what each person is doing and saying that marks his or her behavior
as the style defined in the textbook).
a.      Competing?
b.     Avoiding?
c.      Accommodating?
d.     Collaborating?
e.      Compromising?
3.    
Using the
material in Chapter 6 and/or Chapter 8 regarding culture and conflict, identify
and describe any possible sources of conflict or aspects of culture that might
be creating challenges to resolving conflict between the participants.  In what ways do the participants’ methods for
doing facework during conflict
create problems with conflict resolution? 
Do the participants display different cultural tendencies along the
dimensions of individualism or collectivism, and is this influencing
conflict dynamics?  Other cultural
issues?
4.     Explain what specific strategies for handling conflict better you would
recommend each person adopt to manage more effectively this conflict or future
conflict?
a.      Can you identify and possible conflict patterns in the episode you observed?  Are there any perception issues (see Chapter 2), serial arguing, mindreading, etc..)?  Suggest how to overcome them.
b.     Offer some specific negotiation steps and skills the participants might use to handle
their conflict more effectively in the future.
c.      How should each participant be supportive of each
other?
d.     How should each participant strive to “save face” for
the other?
***Not all the above
categories may be relevant depending on the conflict you observe.  What specific recommendations from the
textbook would offer the people in this conflict so they might have handled it
more effectively?
Your
paper should not only address each of the content areas identified above, you must also construct the paper such that
it is structured to include an introduction, body and conclusion, and in
which you include any visual data such as film segments or examples that would
help support your conclusions or convey your ideas.  Obviously, the body of your paper should be
devoted to addressing items 1-4 above. 
You should also construct your paper keeping in mind the general
guidelines for papers outlined in the syllabus.
*****HINT:
Think about the potentially rich source of data you might find on almost any
given episode of almost any Reality
Television show in which the relationships between the people on the show
are the main or secondary focus of the show. 
Seriously folks, there is more than an abundance of recorded conflict
interaction out there from which to choose.
Specific criteria for
evaluating Assignment #2:
·       
Does the student
respond effectively to each section of the assignment by identifying, defining,
and applying the concepts related to each section?
·       
Follow the Grading Scale for Papers as a resource
for how to construct your paper.
·       
How consistently
do you focus on communication in your responses to the assignment?
·       
How much detail
do you provide in your use of examples to support responses and your
connections between course related concepts and the behavior and communication
of the characters in the film or TV show?
·       
How accurately do you apply course concepts?
·       
How professional
is the overall organization of ideas, structure of the paper, spelling,
punctuation, grammar, etc.? (Again, use the Grading
Scale for Writing Assignments as a basic guide for your paper).
·       
*****YOU MUST
DEFINE EACH CONCEPT ACCORDING TO THE WAY YOU INTEND TO USE IT (I.E.,
OPERATIONALIZE). Therefore, WHENEVER, you introduce and use a course related
concept in your paper you must define it (and yes that may mean quoting your
authors).
·       
WRITE YOUR
INDIVIDUAL PAPER AS THOUGH YOU WERE WRITING TO AN AUDIENCE UNFAMILIAR WITH THE
CONCEPTS.
·       
Cite your source EACH time you quote the author(s), and/or
if you paraphrase ideas from the article. 
Do NOT plagiarize!  You
MUST integrate the source material into your paper, (i.e., reference your
sources IN THE TEXT of your document).
·       
Use correct MLA or APA methods for quoting your
authors and citing your source(s). 
Create a bibliography and cite your source(s) in the text.  DO NOT Plagiarize!  Acts of plagiarism will result in an “F” for
this assignment, and you may be charged with academic misconduct.
·       
***If you
do not meet this criterion, you will fail the assignment and/or be charged with
academic misconduct.