Eureka! Institutional Repository

The occurrence of conflicts in school organizations as well as in every interaction space is a common phenomenon. Its efficient management contributes to improving the quality of the knowledge provided and to its proper functioning. The recognition of the causes, the study of the basic techniques used by the headmasters for their management and their evaluation are of key importance to its successful settlement. The present study investigates the concept of conflict, its types and forms. The factors influencing its manifestation are explored and its consequences positive and negative are described. The techniques of managing inter-school conflicts are presented, the role of communication in their management is highlighted, and the effectiveness of the headmaster is assessed in relation to the techniques he uses. For the purposes of the thesis, the phenomenon in the primary schools of Western Thessaloniki is investigated with a quantitative approach through the use of an anonymous questionnaire which was answered by 195 teachers. It addresses the causes, the consequences of conflicts while assessing the efficiency of headmasters according to the conflict management techniques used by them. The results of the survey show that conflicts manifest in the vast majority of elementary schools in Western Thessaloniki. The distribution of classes, the behavior of teachers, the way of management by the headmasters arise as the root causes. Most of the participants argued that conflicts have a negative impact on the functioning of the school, with the main consequence of creating a strongly negative working climate. By demonstrating the differentiation from the traditional approach to the phenomenon's view as only negative, the sample demonstrated the positive effects stressing as most important its contribution to problem-solving and finding the optimal solutions. The role of the headmaster in conflict management is crucial, with the majority of teachers responding that they tend to adopt the techniques of organizing, negotiating and co-operating, avoiding the imposition of their power.