Power-based conflict resolution attempts to resolve conflicts by imposing an outcome with formal or informal power. This approach is generally considered the least likely to produce a durable, satisfactory solution, and the most likely to damage relationships and incur other costs. It’s worth noting, however, that not all power moves are created equal. Is a power move to restore employee rights, or health and safety protections, a good or bad thing? Power-based approaches reflect a balance of power more than they reflect a balance of interests, and they’re often used to change the balance of power – in order to meet the interests of some at the expense of others. Whether that’s a good or bad thing might depend on where one is in the balance – or imbalance – of power. All of this makes power-based conflict resolution tricky and deserving of a deeper dive in other content.
Ury, Brett, and Goldberg developed the interests/rights/power framework as a system design tool, not just a negotiation framework, in Getting Disputes Resolved: Designing Systems to Cut the Costs of Conflict.
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