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This paper attempts to examine Oral Communication A textbooks in terms of conflict situations which occur in model dialogs and expressions used in such situations. The conflict situations are classified based on the conflict types observed by Cole (1996) and the management styles categorized by Rahim (1986). Some other types of situations are added depending on the structure of the dialogs.
Conflict situations are observed in model dialogs in 14 out of the 15 selected Oral Communication A textbooks. The situations can be categorized into six types and the expressions used in the dialogs are classified into eight groups.
In conclusion, conflict can be included effectively in many kinds of situations even at the basic level in addition to dialogs focusing on agreement and disagreement. Furthermore, dialogs with conflict can be used to teach expressions with various functions along with the key points of the lessons. Finally, teachers who are interested in this topic should be aware that conflict situations are covered to various degrees depending on the textbooks and may want to keep this in mind when adding supplementary material.
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