How to Resolve a Conflict Without Violence

The urge to fight can start young and carry on throughout someone's life.

Human interaction can sometimes be difficult if the person you're interacting with disagrees with you or passionately opposes something you may passionate support. Unfortunately, there are people, who believe the only way to resolve conflict is by getting violent. But if you find yourself in a heated disagreement with someone who is prone to physical fighting, you can avoid violence by convince the other person that there are other ways to resolve the particular disagreement.

Instructions

1. Think about that other person.. It's possible that he may not even consider the issue important at all, but may have something going on in his life that has frustrated him to the point where he is taking it out on you by trying to pick a fight.

2. Stay calm. Don't hurl insults at the other person, in fact avoid any vulgar language; you don't want to trigger someone with a history of violence to throw a punch. Likewise,don't overreact to any insults or language being thrown at you. Know that it's just the other person's way of getting you to fight, since he or she seems to believe fighting is the best way to resolve a conflict.

3. Keep in mind that both you and the other person are both people with lives, feelings and people who care about them. Think about what fighting with them would do to the two of you and to those who care about you.

4. Assess the situation constantly. Keep asking yourself what you feel and whether or not you can gain or keep control of the situation. Ask yourself if it is possible to calm this person down so that the issue can be discussed rationally.

5. Talk to the person with as much respect as possible. Try to connect to the point where you can get him or her to talking rationally. Really listen to what they have to say and respond appropriately. Try to fix the situation through discussion.

6. Walk away if you can't seem to calm the person down or come to an agreement. No matter the outcome, it's best not to get violent. If this is a person close to you and there is an important issue that must be resolved, you may need to go back at it when things have calmed down.

Tips & Warnings

• Keep in mind the person who is quarreling with you. Is this the type of person that might use a weapon? You may need to be ready to call the police.

References

• Violence Prevention; Peter Stringham MD
• Resolving Conflict