Empowering career search and enrichment

 In early 2010 Dr. Ralph Kilmann started a blog series for CPP on various topics associated with the Thomas-Kilmann Conflict Mode Instrument (TKI) that were published here on ICON Success. As coauthor of the TKI assessment, Dr. Kilmann has an unparalleled depth of expertise and experience with conflict management and the TKI tool and wanted to share his insight with you.

Now, on the 40th anniversary of the creation of the TKI assessment, Dr. Kilmann has taken those separate blogs and put them together in a single collection. As the world’s best-selling instrument for understanding how different conflict-handling modes, or styles, affect interpersonal and group dynamics, the TKI tool measures the frequency with which you use those five styles of behavior: competing, collaborating, compromising, avoiding, and accommodating. The tool offers a pragmatic, situational approach to conflict resolution so that your needs, and the needs of others, can be met.

You can use this compilation with yourself as well as your students to become more aware of some fascinating nuances about using and interpreting the TKI assessment. Check out the last section where he talks about a key design issue for all assessments - the social desirability response bias - and discusses how the TKI was designed to minimize that issue. This feature provides a more accurate assessment and has contributed to the long-term success of the TKI tool.

Click here to read Dr. Kilmann’s Celebrating 40 Years with the TKI Assessment: A Summary of My Favorite Insights.