8125

• UCREFRP Catalog Number: 8125
• Author: Moore, C. W.
• Title: Editor
• USFW Year: Series
• USFW - Doc Type: 1986
• Copyright Material: YES

Approaches to Managing and Resolving Conflict 9
vately or publicly sanctioned. The last category is extralegal in
that it does not rely on a socially mandated-or often socially
acceptable-process and uses coercion to force an opponent into
compliance or submission. There are two types of extralegal ap-
proaches: nonviolent action and violence.
Nonviolent action involves a person or group in commit-
ting or not committing acts that force an opponent to behave in
a desired manner (Sharp, 1973). These acts, however, do not in-
volve physical coercion or violence and often try to minimize
psychological harm as well. Nonviolent action works best when
the parties are mutually dependent on each other and must rely
on each other for their well-being. When this is the case, one of
the parties may force the other to make concessions by refusing
to cooperate or by committing undesirable acts.
Nonviolent action often involves civil disobedience-viola-
tion of widely accepted social norms or laws-to raise an oppo-
nent's consciousness or bring into public view practices that the
nonviolent activist considers unjust or unfair. Nonviolent ac-
tion can be conducted on an individual level or by a group and
may be either public or private in nature.
Whittamore has considered nonviolent action on personal
and group levels to resolve his dispute. On the individual level,
he has considered occupying Singson's office until the director
will bargain in good faith and give him a fair settlement. He has
also considered opening a private practice, challenging the terms
of the contract, and forcing the clinic to take him to court or
drop the case. If he goes to court, he can exploit the publicity,
and mobilize his patients to pressure the clinic to settle.
One of his patients has suggested organizing a picket or
vigil outside the clinic to embarrass Singson into a settlement. If
that were to be unsuccessful, he has suggested a group sit-in.
Whittamore is unsure of the effect of these approaches, as well
as of the costs.
The last approach to dispute resolution is violence or
physical coercion. This approach assumes that if the costs to the
person or property of an opponent and the costs of maintaining
his position are high enough, the adversary will be forced to
make concessions. For physical coercion to work, the initiating