Experimental Analysis of Behavior Commons^™

Can Conflict Cultivate Collaboration? The Positive Impact Of Mild Versus Intense Task Conflict Via Perceived Openness Rather Than Emotions, Tsai Ming-Hong

Research Collection School of Social Sciences

Public Significance Statement In contrast to previous research on the negative associations between conflict and collaboration, the current investigation demonstrates the positive effects of conflict on collaboration and performance and offers practical suggestions on beneficial conflict expressions. Specifically, when people debate and deliberate about their different viewpoints about task-related issues, they tend to collaborate and thus achieve high task performance by enhancing their perceptions of others' openness rather than by influencing their emotions.Previous research has demonstrated negative associations between task-relevant conflicts and collaboration. To supplement the previous findings and explore the potential benefits of conflicts, we differentiate between two types …