The nature of conflict for teams in isolated, confined, and extreme environments

Future space exploration will require crews to live and work together for an extended period in an isolated, confined, and extreme (ICE) environment, with high levels of autonomy from Earth. Such circumstances increase the importance of interpersonal relationships and require team members to keep conflicts manageable and rely on one another for social support. Although there is a wide body of literature from traditional teams on team conflict, less is known about the nature and role of conflict for teams that operate in ICE environments. We collected and analyzed daily open-ended conflict reports from five 4-person crews living and working in an ICE environment. Concept mapping suggested four types of conflict: (1) noted discords, (2) work disagreements, (3) interpersonal tensions, and (4) interpersonal breakdowns. The patterns of conflict type and timing of conflicts varied by team. Results suggest a more nuanced conflict typology may be helpful in understanding the relationship between conflict and key outcomes such as team performance in ICE settings, as well as how conflict is best managed.