Conflict resolution dynamics pose situations in which either a real conflict or an imaginary one arises Whatever it is, the participants must find a solution, either through reflection or by debating and cooperating.
These activities are usually very fun, involving games that calm the situation generated by a group conflict or that prepare participants to face tense situations in the future.
Below we will see different conflict resolution dynamics, suitable for all ages, with materials that are relatively easy to carry out and effective when it comes to solving problematic situations between people.
These are conflict resolution dynamics recommended to be applied with groups of people, suitable for all ages, easy to carry out and with very affordable material.
1. Steal the flag
The objective of this conflict resolution dynamic is develop a better team decision-making capacity, in addition to making participants see the need to cooperate
The time this activity takes can be very variable, there is no limit. The size of the group can be around 25 members and a more or less large space will be required. For material, you will need something that simulates a flag, such as a pike fixed on a cone.
Steps to follow
The game begins by forming two antagonistic groups: the police and the thieves. The flag is placed inside the police field, a flag which the thieves have to obtain.
The idea is that the thieves manage to steal the flag and take it to their field, but without being intercepted by the police. If one is intercepted, the thief goes to jail and the flag returns to its place.
Although simple, with this activity You can get groups to plan strategies to prevent the opponent from beating them, cooperating and distracting rivals
2. Piranhas in the river
The idea of this activity is to succeed after resolving a conflictive solution, promoting cooperation and help among group members.
It only takes about 20 minutes since you are working with a medium-sized group, of at most 15 people. A large space is required, preferably an outdoor one. We are going to need fabric, chalk, books or other objects.
Steps to follow
The facilitator explains that you have to cross the river without leaving it, which is delimited by the cloth, the chalk or any other object that could be found In addition, they have to transport, from one place to another, a series of objects, one on the way there and another, different one, on the way back. Each person will be assigned an object, which cannot be carried by the other classmates.
Whoever goes off the path must start the activity from the beginning. The activity will end when all participants have made their way there and back.
At the end, there will be time to discuss how the activity went, what strategies have been developed so that everyone could transport things satisfactorily, which objects have been more difficult to transport and which have been more difficult.
3. Blow up like balloons
The objective of this activity is learn to calm down in a conflict situation
It will take at most 15 minutes to carry out, and it can be done with groups of very varied sizes. The space should be large enough so that participants can form a circle.
Steps to follow
The facilitator begins the activity by explaining that, when we find ourselves in a conflictive situation, this produces an emotional and also physiological reaction. The explanation must be adapted to the level and age of the participants.
After this explanation they are told that we are going to inflate ourselves like balloons. First, take deep breaths, standing with your eyes closed. As your lungs fill with air, you will raise your arms This step is repeated several times, enough so that everyone has learned to do the exercise correctly.
Then, they release the air and begin to pretend to crumple up like balloons, deflating until they fall to the ground. This exercise is repeated several times.
After a few minutes have passed and they have relaxed, they are asked if they think they can do these exercises when they are angry.
It may seem like an ideal activity for children, which it is, but it also works for adults with anger control problems.
4. Barriers to the solution
This activity aims to teach participants to solve a problem, in addition to measure the group’s capabilities in the face of a problematic situation and describe alternatives to find the solution
It lasts approximately one hour and can be done in groups of 15 or 20 members. It will be a large space and as material it is enough to have a blackboard, sheets of paper and pens.
Steps to follow
A sheet of paper is given to each member of the group to write down the problem they have recently discovered. The leaves are folded and stored in a bag.
In order, each participant will take a sheet of paper from the bag and read it aloud, while another member of the group will write down what has been said on the board. Once all the problems have been noted, one is chosen to solve by voting.
Once the topic has been chosen, what happened is discussed and, below the chosen topic, two columns are drawn on the board In one, the functional forces are pointed out, that is, advantages or positive aspects of the issue discussed, while in the other, the dysfunctional forces, that is, disadvantages or negative aspects, will be pointed out.
Once all this has been observed, we will deliberate on the plausibility of the problem itself, whether it can be reformulated into something productive for the group or whether it is an issue that must be resolved peacefully through other activities.
5. The referee
The objective of this activity is resolve a conflictive situation between all members of the group while promoting understanding and empathy
It takes about 40 minutes to do this activity, since you are working with large groups of 20 to 30 people. It is especially useful in the classroom, and can be done in the class itself. You will need a whiteboard, pen and papers.
Steps to follow
This activity It is ideal to do it when a problematic situation has arisen in the classroom, which affects the development of the group The teacher presents the situation in class, which they will try to resolve together.
One of the people involved is explaining the situation. If necessary, she takes note of the events and people who have been involved in the board in order to be able to return to those points later.
As names come up, the teacher will have to encourage the people involved to intervene and explain their point of view. The idea is that together and based on different opinions and testimonies, a solution is reached
It should be noted that here the teacher, or the facilitator in charge, plays an important role, since he or she has to direct the debate and encourage the participation of the entire group, or at least those who have been involved in the incident.
6. Role play
This dynamic of conflict resolution Its objective is to represent a situation, real or hypothetical, while developing empathy
It will take about 30 minutes to carry it out, and you can work with a group of 20 people. The place should be large enough to be able to recreate the situation in question or, if much movement is not required, a place where they can sit in a circle.
Steps to follow
The facilitator will present the conflict situation, whether it is one that has really happened in the group or one that is imaginary.
If the group size is large and there are not many people involved in the actual situation, some volunteers will be asked to come forward.
The idea is that Volunteers will have to change roles, but first they will be given a few minutes to get to know the person they are going to play and put yourself in your role. Ideally, the facilitator has given them the characteristics of the character to interpret, orally or in writing.
These volunteers play their role, while the rest of the colleagues pay attention and pay attention to what they are doing. When it has finished, a debate begins between those who have changed roles and those who have not, to reach a common agreement.
7. Personal motivation
The objective of this dynamic is to demonstrate that each person has different motivations from those of the others, in addition to learning to understand the opinions of others, even if they do not coincide with one’s own.
This activity lasts about 40 minutes, and can be done in medium-sized groups, up to 30 people. You need a large place where two concentric circles can be formed.
Steps to follow
The facilitator will ask 6 or 7 people to volunteer to carry out the activity In order to follow this step, it is necessary that the group is motivated enough to be able to present themselves voluntarily.
They are asked to sit in a circle, so that they can see each other’s faces. Next, the rest of the classmates will form another circle around them.
The person in charge of the activity will introduce a question to be discussed It must be a conflictive situation that either has happened in the group and has generated tension or, also, an imaginary situation but that does not leave anyone indifferent.
The volunteers, that is, those who form the inner circle, will debate this issue. Once the volunteers have finished discussing, there will be a big debate with the entire group as a whole.
It is very important that during the debate the facilitator conducts it in the appropriate way, preventing the subject from changing or violence
At this point the following questions will be analyzed. The first, why the volunteers volunteered to go out and the rest did not. They are asked what their motivation was for the activity.
The second is to ask them What did you feel when you saw that your opinion did not coincide with the rest of your colleagues? It is very important to check if there has been respect between the opinions, if they have empathized, if someone has changed their point of view during the course of the activity…
8. Fantasy of a conflict
The objective of this activity is for each person to express their own way of resolving a conflict, identifying different strategies and developing a common plan. This will require those involved to reach a successful conclusion, negotiating and respecting each other.
The activity lasts about 60 minutes with groups of between 20 and 25 people The place where the activity takes place can be the classroom or a space where the participants are sitting and can lean on something to write. For materials you will need sheets of paper and pens, as well as a whiteboard.
Steps to follow
All people will sit down. Next, The person in charge of the activity will explain the following situation:
“You find yourself walking down the street and you see, in the distance, someone you think you know. You realize that this person is a person with whom you have many conflicts. As you get closer to her you get more nervous because you don’t know how to react when you come across her. “You can think of some alternatives… decide now which one you choose and take a few minutes to recreate, in your imagination, what would happen.”
After a while, the facilitator returns with these words:
“It’s already happened, that person is gone. What do you feel? Are you satisfied with the way you have behaved?”
Participants are given about 15 or 20 minutes to reflect on the alternatives they considered to act which one they chose, what reasons pushed them to choose it and how satisfied they feel.
A few minutes are left for groups of 3 people to discuss the activity. One participant from each group will act as spokesperson for the entire group discussion.
9. Yes and No
This dynamic aims to promote rapprochement between different positions on an issue and encourage flexibility of opinions
It will take about 40 minutes to carry out this activity, and you will work with groups of about 30 people. The space can be a classroom or a large place where participants can move. As for the material, you will need two large pieces of cardboard, on which “YES” is written on one and “NO” is written on the other.
Steps to follow
The “YES” and “NO” cards are placed in the classroom, facing each other. It is very important that, to ensure that there is free movement in the classroom or in the space that affects there are no objects in the way.
All participants stand in the center of the space. The facilitator will say a statement and each person must go to a point in the classroom, depending on whether or not they agree with the phrase that has been said.
When people are already situated, they must say, one by one, the motivations why they have gone “YES” or “NO”, giving reasons for them.
The facilitator says another phrase and the participants return to where the cards are according to their point of view.
10. Spider web
This activity aims to resolve a conflict as a group, while promoting trust and cooperation among its members.
The activity lasts about 20 minutes, and the group must be small, of about 15 people maximum. The ideal age to work with is 12 years and older
It needs to be done outdoors, in a place where there are posts or trees where you can put the spider web, made with a long enough rope.
Steps to follow
First, the group is explained what the activity consists of, which is to cross from one side of the spider web to the other, without touching it or moving it.
When all the members of the group have been able to go to one side, there will be a debate and analysis of how the activity has developed That is, they will be asked what cooperation and help mechanisms they have formed, how they felt throughout the activity, if they believed they were going to achieve it…
To complicate the activity a little, you can set a time limit to carry out the activity, depending on the number of members in the group, or also tell them that they are prohibited from speaking, that they must communicate using gestures.
11. Turn the sheet inside out
The objective of this dynamic is to work among colleagues, collaborating. Besides, The facilitator will aim to stimulate the search for solutions in a new conflictive situation
The time needed to carry out this activity is about 45 minutes, although you work with a fairly small group, between 10 and 15 people. It will be done in a large space, preferably outdoors. As its name indicates, you will need a large sheet of material.
Steps to follow
The person in charge of the activity will put the sheet on the floor and ask all the participants to stand on top of it They should occupy half the space.
When they are positioned, it will be explained to them that they must all turn the sheet over, without anyone getting off it but also not stepping on the floor.
Once the action has passed, a debate will be promoted in which the strategies that the group members have carried out are identified, how they have come to turn the sheet, if they have needed to change the original plan…
12. My personal map
With this dynamic of conflict resolution it is intended make participants differentiate between subjective and personal elements that appear during a problematic situation in addition to enhancing creativity.
It requires at most one hour and you can work with groups of 30 people. The place must be a large space. Photocopies, images or photos will be needed for material.
Each participant is given an identical sheet of a photograph, newspaper clipping or any image. Next, they are asked to observe it and draw what that image suggests to them.
Once everyone has done it on a separate sheet, Each one will show their drawing, explaining what made them draw it that way Meanwhile, the facilitator points out the different ways of seeing that photograph that the participants have had.
After everyone has explained their interpretations, we begin to debate and reflect on the results, making them understand that each one has their own way of seeing things.
13. The squad
The goal of this activity is to develop creativity while encouraging teamwork and intergroup communication.
The time is unlimited and you can work with a group of 25 people. The space must be large, and materials will need A4 sheets and a 50 cm diameter ring Steps to follow:
Groups of 3 to 5 people will be formed and the papers will be given to them. The idea is that they have to use these papers to make a ship or plane that, when launched, manages to fly until it passes through a hoop located at a height appropriate for the age of the participants.
Each group passes the test if they manage to get their ship through the hoop, with three attempts for each group. ANDThese attempts cannot be consecutive, that is, there is one attempt per group each turn this way you get everyone to participate.
14. Cooperative chairs
With this dynamic it is intended encourage cooperation among group members while they are solving a problem situation together
It takes about 20 minutes to do the activity, working with a medium group of about 15 people, although you can work with larger groups but requiring a little more time.
Since we are going to make a large circle of chairs, we are going to need a large place. As for materials, we need a chair for each participant, a device to play music and that is turned on at sufficient volume.
Steps to follow
The activity itself is a version of the classic chair game The chairs will be placed in a circle with the seats facing them, that is, faces can be seen.
The music plays and, when it stops, everyone must sit down. In the next round, a chair is removed, and the same thing as in the first is done again. No one can stay standing. But since there are no chairs, there will always be someone who will remain standing.
The funny thing is that, since no one can stay standing, they have to debate who gets the coveted free seat. The more chairs are missing, the more difficult it will be to find a solution together. The game ends when it is impossible for everyone to sit down.
The important thing about the activity is that everyone helps each other, and that no one is discriminated against The idea that you can extract from the dynamics is that it doesn’t matter what we are like, we can all be victims of some lack.
