Managing Intergovernmental Conflict: The Case of Human Services

Tension exists concerning the issues of the federal government's responsibility to hold grant recipients accountable to national goals, and state and local governments' drive to meet self-determined needs and priorities; such tension is a basic characteristic of US intergovernmental relati...

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Bibliographic Details
Published in:Public administration review 1983-09, Vol.43 (5), p.403-410
Main Authors: Buntz, C. Gregory, Radin, Beryl A.
Format: Article
Language:English
Subjects:
Bargaining
Beryl
Conflict
Conflict management
External political conflict
Federal
Government
Government services
Intergovernmental relations
Political conflict
Political parties
Public administration
Social interaction
State government
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Summary:Tension exists concerning the issues of the federal government's responsibility to hold grant recipients accountable to national goals, and state and local governments' drive to meet self-determined needs and priorities; such tension is a basic characteristic of US intergovernmental relations. A key premise of this research is that such conflict is inevitable and must be actively managed. A conflict management perspective for human sevices management is given which is likely to result in significantly improved intergovernmental interactions and more realistic plans and planning processes. Conflict is defined as conscious opposing behavior between parties. It is the nature of the relationship that is of primary importance, however; conflict is functional when it contributes to planning effectiveness or innovation. The focus of conflict management should be on managing the interface to redirect the parties' behavior.
ISSN:0033-3352
1540-6210
DOI:10.2307/975847