The role of conflict management strategies in reducing counterproductive work behavior: A comparative study between students’ views and staff members’ views in private higher institutes

This study aims to identify important counterproductive work behaviours that exist usually in private higher education academies. It also investigates main conflict management strategies that prevent or reduce these behaviours, from the point of views of both students and staff members. Data were collected using two questionnaires (one for students & another one for staff members). They contain a number of questions on demographic data of participants, the independent variable (37 questions on conflict management strategies) and the dependent variable (27 questions on counterproductive work behaviours). Data were collected from a sample of 384 students and a population of 95 staff members from private higher education academies in Cairo and Alexandria. From the point of staff members’ view, conflict management strategies statistically affect on counterproductive work behaviours. Cooperation, obligeance and dominance strategies statistically affect on counterproductive work behaviours. However, avoidance and compromise strategies are not statistically significant in their influence on counterproductive work behaviours. From the point of students’ view, conflict management strategies statistically affect on counterproductive work behaviours. Avoidance, compromise and dominance strategies affect statistically on counterproductive work behaviours. However, cooperation and obligeance strategies are not statistically significant in their influence on counterproductive work behaviours. This study reveals that dominance, compromise and obligeance strategies are the most favourable conflict management strategies to staff members. Whereas, avoidance and cooperation strategies are the most favourable conflict strategies to students. The study also shows that there are statistically significant differences between staff members and students regarding counterproductive work behaviours (Theft, sabotage, production deviation), except for withdrawal and abuse against others in private higher education academies.