Measuring buyers’ perceptions of conflict in business-to-business sales interactions

Journal of Business & Industrial Marketing

Volumn 19, Issue 4, 2004, Pages 236-249

  Reid, David A ^a   Bolman Pullins, Ellen ^a   Buehrer, Richard E ^a   Plank, Richard E ^b  

^a UNIVERSITY OF TOLEDO   (United States)

^b WESTERN MICHIGAN UNIVERSITY   (United States)

Author keywords

[No Author keywords available]

Indexed keywords

EID: 3242717092     PISSN: 08858624     EISSN: None     Source Type: Journal    
DOI: 10.1108/08858620410540973     Document Type: Article

References (78)

1. Amason, A.C. (1996), “Distinguishing the effects of functional and dysfunctional conflict on strategic decision making: resolving a paradox for top management teams”, Academy of Management Journal, Vol. 39 No. 1, pp. 123-48.
2. Amason, A.C. and Sapienza, H.J. (1997), “The effects of top management team size and interaction norms on cognitive and affective conflict”, Journal of Management, Vol. 23 No. 4, pp. 495-516.
3. Amason, A.C., Hochwarter, W.A., Thompson, K.R. and Harrison, A.W. (1995), “Conflict: an important dimension in successful management teams”, Organizational Dynamics, Vol. 24 No. 2, pp. 20-35.
4. Anderson, J.C. and Narus, J.A. (1990), “A model of distributor firm and manufacturer firm working partnerships”, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 54, pp. 42-58.
5. Argyris, C. (1958), Personality and Organization: The Conflict Between System and the Individual, Harper, New York, NY.
6. Armstrong, J.S. and Overton, T.S. (1977), “Estimating nonresponse bias in mail surveys”, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 14 No. 3, pp. 396-402.
7. Bagozzi, R.P. (1993), “ACR fellow address”, presentation at the Association for Consumer Research Annual Conference, Nashville, TN.
8. Baldauf, A. and Cravens, D.W. (1999), “Improving the effectiveness of field sales organizations: a European perspective”, Industrial Marketing Management, Vol. 28 No. 1, pp. 63-72.
9. Barki, H. and Hardwick, J. (2001), “Interpersonal conflict and its management in information system development”, MIS Quarterly, Vol. 25 No. 2, pp. 195-228.
10. Baron, R.A. (1993), “Reducing aggression and conflict: the incompatible response approach, or, why people who feel good usually won't be bad”, in Ed. Brannigan, G.G. and Ed. Merrens, M.R. (Eds), The Undaunted Psychologist: Adventures in Research, Temple University Press, Philadelphia, PA, pp. 203-17.
11. Behrman, D.N. and Perreault, W.H. (1982), “Measuring the performance of industrial salespersons”, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 10 No. 3, pp. 355-70.
12. Bisno, H. (1988), Managing Conflict, Sage, Newbury Park, CA.
13. Bissonnette, V.L., Rusbult, C.E. and Kilpatrick, S.D. (1997), “Empathetic accuracy and conflict resolution”, in Ed. Ickes, W.J. (Ed.), Empathic Accuracy, Guilford Marital Press, New York, NY, pp. 251-81.
14. Boulding, K. (1963), Conflict and Defense, Harper & Row, New York, NY.
15. Brown, G., Widing, R.E. II and Coulter, R.L. (1991), “Customer evaluation of retail salespeople utilizing the SOCO scale: a replication, extension, and application”, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 19 No. 4, pp. 347-51.
16. Chennells, D. (2001), The Politics of Nationalism in Canada: Cultural Conflict Since 1760, University of Toronto Press, Toronto.
17. Comer, L.B., Drollinger, T. and Ding, J. (1999), “Three faces of empathy: a new look at an old conundrum”, in Ed. Humphreys, M.A. (Ed.), Proceeding of the National Conference in Sales Management, Illinois State University, Normal, IL, pp. 105-16.
18. Coser, L.A. (1956), The Functions of Social Conflict, The Free Press, Glencoe, IL.
19. Cosier, R.A. and Dalton, D.R. (1990), “Positive effects of conflict: a field assessment”, International Journal of Conflict Management, Vol. 1 No. 1, pp. 81-92.
20. Day, R.L., Michaels, R.E. and Perdue, B.C. (1988), “How buyers handle conflicts”, Industrial Marketing Management, Vol. 17 No. 2, pp. 153-60.
21. De Dreu, C. and Van Vianen, A. (2001), “Managing relationship conflict and the effectiveness of organizational teams”, Journal of Organizational Behavior, Vol. 22 No. 3, pp. 309-28.
22. Denton, K.D. (1988), “Attitudes that solve conflicts”, Manage, Vol. 39 No. 4, pp. 23-25.
23. Deutsch, M. (1973), The Resolution of Conflicts: Constructive and Destructive Processes, Yale University Press, New Haven, CT.
24. Feldman, L. (1980), “Marital conflict and marital intimacy: an integrative psychodynamic behavioral-systemic model”, Advances in Family Psychiatry, Vol. 2, pp. 19-33.
25. Ford, N.M., Walker, O.C. Jr and Churchill, G.A. (1975), “Expectation-specific measures of the intersender conflict and role ambiguity experienced by industrial salesmen”, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 3 No. 2, pp. 95-111.
26. Fornell, C. and Larcher, D.F. (1981), “Evaluating structural equation models with unobservable variables and measurement error”, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 18 No. 1, pp. 39-50.
27. Gaski, J.F. (1984), “The theory of power and conflict in channels of distribution”, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 48 No. 2, pp. 9-29.
28. Gerbing, D.W. and Anderson, J.C. (1988), “An updated paradigm for scale development incorporating unidimensionality and its assessment”, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 25 No. 2, pp. 186-92.
29. Glossop, R.J. (2001), Confronting War: An Examination of Humanity's Most Pressing Problem, McFarland Publishing, Jefferson, NC.
30. Higashide, H. and Birley, S. (2002), “The consequences of conflict between the venture capitalist and the entrepreneurial team in the United Kingdom from the perspective of the venture capitalist”, Journal of Business Venturing, Vol. 17 No. 1, pp. 59-81.
31. Jameson, J.K. (1999), “Toward a comprehensive model for the assessment and management of intraorganizational conflict: developing the framework”, International Journal of Conflict Management, Vol. 10 No. 3, pp. 268-94.
32. Jehn, K.A. (1992), “The impact of intragroup conflict on effectiveness: a multimethod examination of the benefits and detriments of conflict”, Dissertation Abstracts International, Vol. 53 No. 6, p. 2005.
33. Jehn, K.A. (1994), “Enhancing effectiveness: an investigation of advantages and disadvantages of value-based intragroup conflict”, International Journal of Conflict Management, Vol. 5 No. 3, pp. 223-38.
34. Jehn, K.A. (1995), “A multimethod examination of the benefits and detriments of intragroup conflict”, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 40 No. 2, pp. 256-82.
35. Jehn, K.A. (1997), “A qualitative analysis of conflict types and dimensions in organizational groups”, Administrative Science Quarterly, Vol. 42 No. 3, pp. 530-57.
36. Jehn, K.A. and Chatman, J.A. (2000), “The influence of proportional and perceptual composition on team performance”, International Journal of Conflict Management, Vol. 11 No. 1, pp. 56-73.
37. Johnson, J.T., Barksdale, H.C. and Boles, J.S. (2003), “Factors associated with customer willingness to refer leads to salespeople”, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 56 No. 4, pp. 257-63.
38. Kadera, K.M. (2001), The Power-Conflict Story: A Dynamic Model of Interstate Rivalry, University of Michigan Press, Ann Arbor, MI.
39. Kauser, S. and Shaw, V. (2001), “International strategic alliances: the impact of behavioral characteristics on success”, Journal of Euro-Marketing, Vol. 10 No. 1, pp. 71-98.
40. Kozan, M.K. (1997), “Culture and conflict management: a theoretical framework”, International Journal of Conflict Management, Vol. 8 No. 4, pp. 338-60.
41. Lulofs, R.S. and Kahn, D.D. (2000), Conflict: From Theory to Action, 2nd ed., Allyn and Bacon, Boston, MA.
42. Maltz, E. and Kohli, A.K. (2000), “Reducing marketing's conflict with other functions: the differential effects of integrating mechanisms”, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 28 No. 4, pp. 479-92.
43. Massey, A.P., Montoya-Weiss, M. and Ramesh, H.V. (2001), “Cultural perceptions of task-technology fit”, Association for Computing Machinery, Vol. 44 No. 12, pp. 83-4.
44. Menguc, B. (1996), “The influence of the market orientation of the firm on sales force behavior and attitudes: further empirical results”, International Journal of Research in Marketing, Vol. 13 No. 3, pp. 277-91.
45. Moore, K.R. (1998), “Trust and relationship commitment in logistic alliances: a buyer perspective”, International Journal of Purchasing and Materials Management, Vol. 34 No. 1, pp. 24-37.
46. Nauta, A. and Sanders, K. (2000), “Interdepartmental negotiation behavior in manufacturing organizations”, International Journal of Conflict Management, Vol. 11 No. 2, pp. 135-61.
47. O'Hara, B.S., Boles, J.S. and Johnston, M.W. (1991), “The influence of personal variables on salesperson selling orientation”, Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, Vol. 11 No. 1, pp. 61-7.
48. Pettijohn, C.E., Pettijohn, L.S. and Taylor, A.J. (2000), “An exploratory analysis of salesperson perceptions of the criteria used in performance appraisals, job satisfaction, and organizational commitment”, Journal of Personal Selling & Sales Management, Vol. 20 No. 2, pp. 77-80.
49. Pinkley, R.L. (1990), “Dimensions of conflict frame: disputant interpretations of conflict”, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 75 No. 2, pp. 117-26.
50. Plank, R., Minton, A.P. and Reid, D.A. (1996), “A short measure of perceived empathy”, Psychological Reports, Vol. 79, pp. 1219-26.
51. Plank, R., Reid, D.A. and Pullins, E.B. (1999), “Perceived trust in business-to-business sales: a new measure”, Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management, Vol. 14 No. 3, pp. 61-72.
52. Porter, T.W. and Lilly, B.S. (1996), “The effects of conflict, trust, and task commitment on project team performance”, International Journal of Conflict Management, Vol. 7 No. 4, pp. 361-76.
53. Priem, R.L. and Price, K.H. (1991), “Process and outcome expectations for the dialectical inquiry, devil's advocacy, and consensus techniques of strategic decision making”, Group and Organization Studies, Vol. 16 No. 2, pp. 206-25.
54. Rasmusson, E. (1999), “The 10 traits of top salespeople”, Sales and Marketing Management, Vol. 151 No. 8, pp. 34-37.
55. Rempel, J.K., Holmes, J.G. and Zanna, M.P. (1985), “Trust in close relationship”, Journal of Personality and Social Psychology, Vol. 49 No. 1, pp. 95-112.
56. Saavedra, R.P., Earley, C.P. and Van Dyne, L. (1993), “Complex interdependence in task performing groups”, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 78 No. 1, pp. 61-72.
57. Saxe, R. and Weitz, B.A. (1982), “The SOCO scale: a measure of the customer orientation of salespeople”, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 19 No. 3, pp. 343-51.
58. Schwenk, C.R. (1990), “Conflict in organizational decision making: an exploratory study”, Management Science, Vol. 36 No. 4, pp. 436-48.
59. Schwepker, C.H. Jr., Ferrell, O.C. and Ingram, T.N. (1997), “The influence of ethical climate and ethical conflict on role stress in the sales force”, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 25 No. 2, pp. 99-108.
60. Sessa, V.I. (1996), “Using perspective taking to manage conflict and affect in teams”, Journal of Applied Behavioral Research, Vol. 32 No. 1, pp. 101-15.
61. Siguaw, J.A., Brown, G. and Widing, R.E. II (1994), “The influence of the market orientation of the firm on sales”, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 31 No. 1, pp. 106-16.
62. Sillars, A.L. and Weisberg, J. (1987), “Conflict as a social skill”, in Ed. Roloff, M. and Ed. Miller, G. (Eds), Interpersonal Processes: New Directions in Communications Research, Sage, Newbury Park, CA.
63. Simons, T.L. and Peterson, R.S. (2000), “Task conflict and relationship conflict in top management teams: the pivotal role of intragroup trust”, Journal of Applied Psychology, Vol. 85 No. 1, pp. 102-11.
64. Stern, L.W. (1969), Distribution Channels: Behavioral Dimensions, Houghton-Mifflin, Boston, MA.
65. Stern, L.W. and Gorman, R.H. (1969), “Conflict in distribution channels: an exploration”, in Ed. Stern, L.W (Ed.), Distribution Channels: Behavioral Dimensions, Houghton-Mifflin, Boston, MA, pp. 156-75.
66. Stiff, J.B., Dillard, J.P., Somera, L., Kim, H. and Sleight, C. (1988), “Empathy, communication, and prosocial behavior”, Communication Monographs, Vol. 55, pp. 198-213.
67. Swan, J.E., Bowers, M.R. and Richardson, L.D. (1999), “Customer trust in the salesperson: an integrative review and meta-analysis of the empirical literature”, Journal of Business Research, Vol. 44 No. 2, pp. 93-107.
68. Swanson, D. and Delia, J. (1976), The Nature of Human Communication, SRA, Palo Alto, CA.
69. Tadepalli, R. (1995), “Measuring customer orientation of a salesperson: modifications of the SOCO scale”, Psychology & Marketing, Vol. 12 No. 3, pp. 177-87.
70. Thomas, K.W. (1976), “Conflict and conflict management”, in Ed. Dunnette, M. (Ed.), Handbook of Industrial and Organizational Psychology, Rand McNally, Chicago, IL, pp. 889-935.
71. Walker, O.C. Jr., Churchill, G.A. Jr and Ford, N.M. (1975), “Organizational determinants of the role conflict and ambiguity experienced by industrial salesmen”, Journal of Marketing, Vol. 39 No. 1, pp. 32-39.
72. Walker, O.C. Jr., Churchill, G.A. Jr and Ford, N.M. (1977), “Motivation and performance in industrial selling – present knowledge and needed research”, Journal of Marketing Research, Vol. 14 No. 2, pp. 156-68.
73. Wall, V.D. Jr. and Nolan, L.L. (1986), “Perceptions of inequity, satisfaction, and conflict in task-oriented groups”, Human Relations, Vol. 39 No. 11, pp. 1033-51.
74. Weiss, D.S. (1996), Beyond the Walls of Conflict: Mutual Gains Negotiation for Unions and Management, Irwin Professional Publishing, Chicago, IL.
75. Weitz, B.A. and Bradford, K.D. (1999), “Personal selling and sales management: a relationship marketing perspective”, Journal of the Academy of Marketing Science, Vol. 27 No. 2, pp. 241-54.
76. Wheeler, H.N. (1985), Industrial Conflict: An Integrative Theory, University of South Carolina Press, Columbia, SC.
77. Wilmot, W. and Hocker, J.L. (1998), Interpersonal Conflict, 5th ed., McGraw-Hill, New York, NY.
78. Zaheer, A.B., McEvily, B. and Perrone, B. (1998), “Does trust matter? Exploring the effects of interorganizational and interpersonal trust on performance”, Organizational Science, Vol. 9 No. 2, pp. 141-59.