Acting Exercising an authoritarian approach, simply tell the group what the resolution will be. Resolves it quickly and without discussion. Emergency situations or when emotions are high and issues will require widespread unpopular decisions. Think through any expected negative fallout ahead of time and have a contingency plan. Tell people calmly and directly what you are going to do- no hesitation or confusion.
Adjusting Splitting differences, exchanging concessions, or give and take to reach a middle ground. Good when a quick, temporary solution is needed for a complex issue. It merges very different opinions or perspectives quickly. Often a third party mediator is effective negotiating the gives and takes of all parties. End the mediation by summarizing, gaining commitments, and setting up future check points in the plan.
Accommodating Sacrificing self concerns in yielding to another person. Most valuable when one person has more vested in the outcome, when one person is wrong, or when there may be more to gain later. Requires getting one person to see their wrong, either through proof or humor. Need to separate thoughts from feelings, and clearly identify how one person's giving in is right, beneficial, and thank them for it.
Avoiding Withdrawing, sidestepping or postponing the issue. Most effective when importance of issue is low, when the conflict is a symptom of a bigger issue, or when time alone will bring about a natural outcome. Good question here- what if I do nothing- what's the worst that could happen? Always explain why you are not doing anything-let them know that it is meant for a time out or cool off, and when you expect to deal with the issue.
Many researchers of conflict resolution suggest using a step-by-step process. This enables the leader to follow a systematic approach to resolving a conflict. Comparing this type of approach to the one in the last section, I believe this method would take more time. However; if that time is available, it might be a more effective method. In fact, it may be useful after one of the other strategies is used to fix the immediate situation. Here is a summary of the various step-by-step theories I found in my research: