Conflict Management Strategies and Organisational Performance: A Study of Federal Roads Maintenance Agency in Abuja, Nigeria

Abstract

Many organizations in Nigeria are currently grappling with task, relationship, and process related conflict. This ongoing struggle is consuming valuable organizational time and resources. If not effectively managed, these conflicts have the potential to escalate, resulting in significant human and financial costs. This study, therefore, centres on evaluating how conflict management strategies influence organizational performance, using the Federal Roads Maintenance Agency (FERMA) as a case study. The objectives of this study are to determine the relationship between conflict management strategies—specifically, avoidance strategy, collaboration strategy, compromising strategy, and accommodation strategy—and organizational performance. The study reviewed relevant theoretical and empirical literature, drawing its theoretical framework from contingency theory. The research design employed a survey research technique, with a close-ended questionnaire serving as the principal instrument for data collection. Utilizing Taro Yamane's formula, the established sample size for this study included 235 staff members of FERMA. Hypotheses were tested using regression analysis as the selected statistical method. The study found a significant positive relationship between organizational performance and all the examined conflict management strategies, namely avoidance strategy, collaboration strategy, accommodation strategy, and compromising strategy. In light of the study's results, it is recommended that managers consider employing the identified conflict management techniques due to their demonstrated effectiveness in effectively handling conflicts within organizational settings.