Strategic Leadership and Conflict Management: Insights from Ogun Central State Hospitals

Conflict management in healthcare is a persistent organisational challenge, with unmanaged conflict undermining staff well‑being, team effectiveness and patient safety. International evidence links workplace conflict, violence and incivility among healthcare workers to burnout, organisational silence and reduced patient safety competence (Kim et al., 2022; Aunger et al., 2025; Han et al., 2025). In Nigeria, chronic resource constraints, heavy workloads and role ambiguity further intensify conflict in public hospitals (Ayodele & Akinmoladun, 2023; Olabode et al., 2022; Valentine & Lavizzo‑Mourey, 2025). This study examined the relationship between strategic leadership and conflict management at State Hospital Ijaye, Abeokuta, and State Hospital Ifo, Ogun State, using a convergent mixed-methods design. From a population of 418 staff, Taro Yamane’s formula yielded a sample of 204, with 165 usable questionnaires and 20 semi‑structured interviews. Conflict management (constructive styles, dysfunctional conflict, team effectiveness) and strategic leadership (vision, participation, staff support) were measured with validated Likert scales; Cronbach’s alpha exceeded 0.80, and factor analysis supported construct validity. Descriptive statistics showed moderately high levels of constructive conflict management (M = 3.72), team effectiveness (M = 3.79), and strategic leadership dimensions (Ms = 3.76–3.88), alongside nontrivial dysfunctional conflict (M = 3.45). Pearson correlation revealed that strategic leadership correlated positively with constructive conflict styles (r = 0.68, p < 0.01) and team effectiveness (r = 0.72, p < 0.01) and negatively with dysfunctional conflict (r = −0.56, p < 0.01). Qualitative findings indicated that clear communication, participative decision‑making and supportive leadership foster collaborative conflict cultures, whereas distant or biased leadership, compounded by resource shortages and unclear policies, sustains destructive conflict. Although limited by self-report, two-hospital scope, and cross-sectional design, the evidence suggests that strategic leadership, embedded in a supportive culture and adequate resources, is a key lever for improving conflict management in Nigerian state hospitals.