Social skills—party of none, the ramifications of conflict avoidance

In an effort to create a safe space on college campuses, students avoided trauma and distress, which has led to a culture of conflict avoidance among young adults.

Now, this generation is entering the workforce.

According to Robert Half, more employers are experiencing prospective hires and employees who simply vanish, or ghost them.

The recruiting firm Randstad US found that avoidance is most common among younger workers.

“Ghosting,” is disappearing without forewarning or explanation, that used to be a dating tactic, but has now spread to in the workplace.

National etiquette expert Diane Gottsman said regardless of age, people are just not showing up for a situation, whether work or date.

"The negative ramification across the board is number one, you lose credibility as a person, because, believe it or not, we're going to run into them again," said Gottsman.

She said communication and sincerity has to be part of conflict resolution.

"The ramifications are it's your reputation and it’s your credibility," said Gottsman. "We learn how to trust based on how we interact."

She said every age has awkward or uncomfortable situations they don't want to address. Conflict is a part of life everyone experiences and children, as well as adults, should know how to deal with something when it doesn't pan out. But, you don't avoid it.

Gottsman said people who don't ghost should realize they are functional human beings who need to continue moving forward and find the right fit. And, count your blessings if someone ghosts you, you don't want that in your life.

Studies find ghosting reveals a lack of critical skills deficiency in confidence and self-esteem.