Identifying and Evaluating the Effective Factors in Reducing Behavioral Conflicts of Information Technology Employees

Abstract

The present study aimed to identify and evaluate the effective factors contributing to the reduction of behavioral conflicts among information technology employees and to develop a validated organizational conflict management model. This applied research adopted a sequential exploratory mixed-methods design grounded in the pragmatic paradigm. In the qualitative phase, data were collected through semi-structured interviews with 20 theoretical and executive experts in information technology organizations in Tehran, selected using purposive sampling until theoretical saturation was achieved. Qualitative data were analyzed using thematic analysis through Maxqda-V18 software. In the quantitative phase, the statistical population consisted of employees of IT companies in Tehran, from whom 254 participants were selected using stratified random sampling. Data collection was conducted using a researcher-developed questionnaire. Validity was confirmed through face, content, and construct validity, while reliability was verified using Cronbach’s alpha, composite reliability, and McDonald’s omega coefficients. Quantitative data analysis included confirmatory factor analysis and one-sample t-tests conducted in SPSS-V27 and SmartPLS-V3. The findings revealed that four principal factors—role conflict, excessive workload, differences in communication styles, and lack of a coherent organizational structure—significantly influence the reduction or escalation of behavioral conflicts among employees. All factor loadings exceeded 0.5 and t-values were greater than 2.58, confirming measurement model validity. Model fit indices demonstrated satisfactory adequacy, with GOF equal to 0.507 and NFI equal to 0.957. Determination coefficients and predictive relevance indices further indicated strong explanatory and predictive power of the proposed model regarding behavioral conflict management. The results indicate that behavioral conflicts in IT organizations primarily originate from structural, occupational, and interactional organizational conditions rather than individual employee characteristics; therefore, effective conflict reduction requires systematic managerial interventions focused on role clarification, workload regulation, communication skill development, and coherent organizational structuring.