The Leaf of Goals: The use of a metaphor in conflict management

Abstract

Much conflict, as often within a not-for-profit organizational environment, occurs not because parties are disputing over property, but because they have differing views about the goals they are trying to achieve and how this might be done. As part of the development of an alternative methodology for causal layered analysis, it was discovered that part of this methodology could be used in such situations to clarify and articulate the extent of a conflict. The concept of the Leaf of Goals was developed: similar to goal hierarchies, means-ends laddering, and scheme theory, but combining this principle with program logic modelling to establish a path through which objectives might be achieved. It was found that if this were done visually, using a wall-mounted display in a workshop situation, that interests of particular parties could be localized in that display. Different parties tended to emphasize objective in different sections of the leaf, and it was often found that some apparent conflicts could be reduced to differences in emphasis, rather than differences in desired outcomes. The method is illustrated by two case studies: one with a legal aid NGO, and the other with a group of service clubs. In the latter case, the process used led to a realization that different clubs could take different routes to their preferred outcomes, and that their initial conflict had been unnecessary. Though this method cannot be expected to work for zero-sum conflicts, it should have application within broad-based organizations in which members share some common interests.