Strategies for Resolving Interpersonal Conflicts in Adolescence

Abstract

Preferred strategies for responding to interpersonal conflicts in adolescence were analyzed as a function of cultural background (Indonesia vs. Germany) and gender in a study involving 261 adolescents from the two countries. Respondents were presented with three scenarios describing interpersonal conflicts in different role relationships. Following each scenario, they were asked to choose one of three strategies for dealing with the conflict: a confrontational response, a submissive response, or a compromise-oriented response. As predicted, there were significant differences in terms of preferred conflict resolution strategies. Confrontational responses were more prominent among German adolescents than among Indonesian adolescents, whereas the reverse pattern was found for submissive responses. Preferred conflict resolution strategies varied in both cultural groups as a function of the role relationship with the conflict partner. No gender effects were found in any of the analyses.