Write an outline here, you’ll have to begin by reviewing the instructions and requirements for the final paper. When you look there, you will see that the final paper will feature you writing an 8 to 10- page paper where you identify a recent interpersonal, group, or organizational conflict that was later resolved. Altogether, you must:
Identify a conflict you experienced and explain if it was interpersonal, group, or organizational (though there could be some overlap with the organizational element).
Use five SCHOLARLY SOURCES to help support your key points. Again, these should be peer- reviewed journal articles or books by academic publishers.
Focus on communication techniques that were used during the conflict management process
Argue whether the conflict resolution practices used were a “best practice,” list in some scholarly source. Okay, it doesn’t mention the scholarly source, but that is where you should get your list of “best practices.
Include an introduction and conclusion.
The final paper instructions list eleven topics from which you must choose five. Here is the list:
Why does conflict occur?
Conflict management
The positive and negative effects of conflict
Role of personality types in conflict management
Communication techniques
Ethics and workplace conflicts
Climate in a conflict situation
Stress and anger
Facework
Forgiveness
Mediation and arbitration
This means your outline should clearly state which of these five themes your paper will cover. Here is the grading rubric for the outline, so be sure to focus on them:
Develops a formal outline – 1 point
Note that it says you must use “complete sentences,” which isn’t always true of outlines. That is what makes this “formal.”
Develops an introduction and thesis statement for the final paper – 2 points
Do you see that this is worth MORE than whether the outline is formal? A thesis states your central claim. So, be sure to take some position and clearly identify this in your introduction. Consider using this thesis generator tool to help you:
https://writingcenter.uagc.edu/thesis-generator
(Links to an external site.)
If you have struggled writing theses in the past, feel free to email me yours and I can help you develop that key claim. Again, you want to make a solid central point that will be made throughout the paper.
Develops a body section that identifies five conflict topics and includes supporting material for each topic – 3 points
The stakes are getting higher! The first element of the grading rubric was worth 1 point, then the second was worth 2 and now, you have this one worth 3! So, focus on developing the body of your paper. It should both IDENTIFY the conflict topics you will cover AND INCLUDE RELEVANT SUPPORTING MATERIALS. This means this section is deeper than simply listing the themes you will cover. You need to have your list of resources as well, and use them here so I can see that you are on the right track in supporting your key points.
Develops a conclusion for the final paper that reinforces the thesis statement – 2 points
Remember, a conclusion should restate what your key point was in the paper and how you SUPPORTED THAT POINT throughout the paper. You should restate your claim and show me how you proved it. I know you are still working on this, but you should have a sense of where you are going and how you are going to get there.
Reading: Relationship to text – .5 points
For a distinguished score, the rubric says, “Analyzes texts for scholarly significance and pertinence within and across various disciplines, assessing them according to their contributions and consequences.” That is some lofty language. First, you must “analyze” the text to explain why it is interesting and important. Try to see how the author contextualizes their points and shows how they are contributing to the body of knowledge on the topic they are exploring. Second, it says one must look at “various disciplines.” So, you would be wise to use some articles from a variety of academic fields. Think about that as you do your research and find your scholarly articles. Again, what does each of your articles “contribute” to our understanding of communication and conflict? What are the potential consequences of following some of their advice?
Integrative Learning: Connections to experience – .5 points
Here, we want to see how you are “integrating” what you have learned into your daily practice. For distinguished, the rubric says, “Creates meaningful correlations among experiences outside of the classroom to demonstrate an understanding of the given field of study and to broaden one’s own viewpoints.” In looking at correlations, you want to explain how a variety of experiences might be linked to one root cause, event, theme, etc. It is asking you to apply what you have learned to your personal experience and then show how has allowed you to grow intellectually and personally.
The rest are all on written communication (Content development, APA formatting, and meeting the resource and page requirements). They add up to 1 point.
