In the realm of human cognition lies an interesting phenomenon – cognitive bias. This blog will dive deeper into what cognitive bias is, types of cognitive bias, impacts on organizations and tools you can use to mitigate the negative effects of cognitive bias.
 
What is Cognitive Bias?
 
The human brain is wired to develop and make use of social categories and schemas. Humans take mental short cuts in response to ambiguity, information overload, memory, or speed. These mental short cuts are a biological and evolutionary tool to help us make quick decisions in the face of challenging circumstances. These mental short cuts help us remember new information, but also may lead us to falsely remember things that never happened to us and to distort or misremember things that did.
 
These mental short cuts are cognitive biases.
 
Cognitive biases have a profound effect on how individuals view the world and how they make decisions within the world they perceive, even if some of those decisions are not in their best interests or the best decisions, in a given situation.
 
System 1 & 2 Thinking
 
In his book Thinking Fast and Slow Daniel Kahneman differentiates between 2 types of thinking – System 1 and System 2.
 
System 1 thinking operates automatically and quickly, with little or no effort and no sense of voluntary control. This is where Cognitive Bias lives.
 
System 2 thinking allocates attention to mental activities that demand effort. This is often associated with subjective experiences of agency, choice, and concentration.
 
When we think of ourselves and our identity, we are likely to identify most with System 2, the conscious, reasoning self that has beliefs, makes choices and decides what to think about and what to do. In reality, we spend a lot of our lives operating in System 1, and System 1 operations help to construct the beliefs and deliberate choices of System 2.
 
Types of Cognitive Bias
 
There are many types of cognitive bias. Here is a sampling of a few that you may have experienced.

Why Does Cognitive Bias Matter for Organizations?

Cognitive Biases have a substantial impact on any organization, influencing decision-making, problem-solving and overall performance. Bias finds its way into all aspects of our lives and identities - bias can be related to age, race, ethnicity, gender, employment, selection and promotion, health care, religion, disability, nationality, socioeconomic status, education etc. Understanding these biases is crucial for creating an environment that fosters critical thinking, psychological safety, and inclusivity.
 
Key impacts of cognitive bias on organizations include:

1. Decision-making errors: Cognitive biases can lead decision-makers to make flawed judgments, leading to poor choices in strategy, resource allocation, and hiring. Biases like confirmation bias, where individuals seek out information that confirms their pre-existing beliefs, can hinder objectivity and lead to overlooking valuable perspectives.
2. Inefficient problem-solving: Biases such as anchoring bias, where individuals rely heavily on the first piece of information encountered, can constrain creative problem-solving. Teams may get fixated on initial ideas or solutions without exploring other potentially more effective alternatives.
3. Groupthink: Cognitive biases can foster a culture of groupthink, where individuals prioritize conformity over constructive dissent. This can stifle innovation and hinder open discussions, as people may fear challenging the consensus.
4. Talent management challenges: Biases like the halo effect can influence performance evaluations, promotions, and opportunities for advancement. This may lead to overlooking talented individuals or promoting employees based on factors other than merit.
5. Communication breakdown: Cognitive biases can hinder effective communication within teams and across departments. Misunderstandings and misinterpretations may arise due to biases such as the availability heuristic, where recent or easily recalled information is given more weight than it deserves.
6. Risk assessment and management: Cognitive biases like the optimism bias can lead organizations to underestimate risks and overestimate potential benefits. This may result in inadequate risk assessment and preparation for potential crises.
7. Organizational culture: Biases can seep into the fabric of an organization’s culture, affecting its values, norms, and decision-making processes. Recognizing and addressing biases is essential for fostering a culture of inclusivity, diversity, and fairness.
8. Customer relations: biases can impact how organizations interact with their customers. For example, stereotyping customers based on demographics can lead to inappropriate marketing strategies or inadequate customer support.

 
Confronting Cognitive Biases – Strategies for You and Your Team
 
Cognitive biases are not permanent, they are malleable and can be changed by devoting intention, attention, and time to developing new associations. To help mitigate the impact of cognitive bias, managers and organizations can implement strategies such as:
 
Self-Reflection: By increasing self-awareness of your own bias, you can begin to make better decisions and  mitigate the impact of bias. Try this workbook to support you in reflecting on your own bias.
 
Support Your Team in Self-Reflecting: Help your team learn more about and become aware of their bias. You can use this workbook as a tool to facilitate this type of learning and as a way to connect your team to one another.
 
Increase Situational Awareness: Become aware of situations that magnify stereotyping and bias. Time pressures, fatigue, stress and information overload all impact our ability to move past bias and utilize our system 2 thinking. Work with a coach (link) to reflect on past experiences and develop skills for the future.
 
Diversify: While bias may prevent us from hiring a diverse team, diversity can also help us to prevent bias from impacting our business and teams. By consciously working to diversify your team and those at the table making decisions, we can begin to distill out bias.
 
Try New Strategies: Try out new strategies for making decisions. Try consulting with trusted people with different backgrounds or delegating to others to remove your own bias.
 
Set Aside More Time: Where possible, take time to make decisions and allow yourself and those on your team to utilize system 2 thinking. By creating space between stimulus and response, you give yourself the time to reflect on the situation more fully.
 
 
Cognitive biases have a profound effect on how individuals view the world and how they make decisions within the world they perceive. For organizations, this can have far-reaching effects. Luckily, there are things that leaders and organizations can do to reduce bias.
 
 
 
 
References:
 
Biases - The Decision Lab. (n.d.). The Decision Lab. https://thedecisionlab.com/biases
 
Kahneman, D. (2013, April 2). Thinking, Fast and Slow.
 
Stangor, C. and Walinga, J. (2014). Introduction to Psychology – 1st Canadian Edition. Victoria, B.C.: BCcampus. Retrieved from https://opentextbc.ca/introductiontopsychology/

The middle manager position is one of the most important and most challenging positions within an organization. Research shows that the most successful companies have effective middle managers over the long term. However, despite their vital impact on organizational performance, they are often neglected and subjected to complex demands, impacting their ability to be successful.

​In this blog, we discuss the dilemma that middle managers face as they must answer to both requests from above in the hierarchy as well as requests from below. We finish with a discussion on how upper management, board members and small business owners can support their middle managers to be successful.
 
What are Middle Managers?
 
Middle managers act as a bridge between upper management and frontline employees. They oversee the work of lower-level managers, coordinate activities, communicate objectives and ensure operational efficiency. They oversee the facilitation of any changes needed in an organization and creating an effective working environment. In for-profit organizations individuals may have job titles such as general manager, regional manager, department or functional manager. In non-profits, we most often see this reflected in the executive director position.
 
The Dilemma that Middle Managers Face
 
Middle managers are often caught between inconsistent demands from superiors and subordinates, leading to increased role conflict. They occupy multiple roles at once, including leader and direct report. In many cases, the norms and expectations associated with being a leader, are incompatible with the norms and expectations associated with being a direct report.
 
Middle managers must constantly adapt to changing power dynamics in the different roles that they occupy. When interacting with superiors, they naturally adopt a more deferential, low-power behaviour style. Meanwhile, when interacting with direct reports, we see middle managers adopt a more assertive, high-power behavioural style. Failure to conform to these role-based expectations can lead to social conflicts and confusion among managers and their teams.
 
This dilemma is the result of inadequate information, failure of leaders to make performance expectations of middle managers clear, and conflicting pressures regarding behaviour from direct reports and supervisors.
 
These dynamics lead to impacts on both the individual middle manager as well as the overall organization.
 
Individual Impacts
Emotional

• Feelings of stress and anxiety
• Research has shown that those in mid-level positions have higher rates of depression and anxiety than employees who occupy positions nearer either end of the hierarchy

Physical

• High stress levels are risk factors for lots of health concerns, including heart disease

Mental

• Can disrupt cognitive performance and the ability to focus on a task without getting distracted

 
Organizational Impacts
Reduced effectiveness of middle managers and their teams
High turnover rates
 
How You Can Help
 
Upper management, board members and owners have an important role in helping middle managers navigate these difficult dynamics. Several ways to help include:
 
1. Flatten your organizational hierarchy
 
By embracing a more egalitarian organizational structure and culture, organizations can help their middle managers by reducing the behavioural discrepancies between high and low power roles.
 
2. Avoid micromanaging
 
Micromanaging of middle managers creates more instances of unnecessary role switching. Instead, provide strategic input and then allow them the freedom to implement those strategies.
 
3. Get clear on expectations
 
Be clear with your middle managers on what your expectations are in terms of their leadership, decision making and goals. 
 
4. Listen to your middle managers
 
Check in regularly and encourage them to share about their experience of role conflict. You may be surprised by their insight and perspective on their role as well as the overall organization. Try this check-in guide.
 
5. Empower your middle managers
 
Train your managers on the skills they need to effectively navigate relationships with supervisors and direct reports, including conflict management and communication skills. Contact us for training opportunities here.
 
 
Resources
 
Rahim, M. A. (2015). Managing Conflict in Organizations. Greenwood. https://doi.org/10.1604/9780313000485
 
Why Being a Middle Manager Is So Exhausting. (2017, March 22). Harvard Business Review. https://hbr.org/2017/03/why-being-a-middle-manager-is-so-exhausting

Intrapersonal conflict is conflict that arises within one person. It involves uncertainty about what is expected or wanted, or a sense of inadequacy to perform a task. In organizations, intrapersonal conflict,
 
“Occurs when an organizational member is required to perform certain tasks and roles that do not match with his or her expertise, interests, goals and values.” (Rahim, 2015, p. 22)
 
Most organizational team members face the challenge of coping with this type of conflict every day. If left unmitigated, it can have negative impacts on the individual and organization. However, there are things that the organization and the individual’s supervisor can do to support employees with managing this type of conflict.
 
Types of Intrapersonal Conflict – Decision-Making
 
Organizational team members face intrapersonal conflict in decision-making almost every day. Whether that individual must choose between two appealing alternatives, one appealing and one unappealing alternative, or two unappealing alternatives, the decision-making process can create anxiety and uncertainty.
 
Supporting Team Members with Decision-Making
When team members are experiencing intrapersonal conflict related to decision-making, managers can support their people by empowering them and helping them build decision-making skills. Here are some things to try:

- Discuss decision principles to help guide your team member in the decision-making process. These might include

• What is the decision itself?
• When does the decision need to be made by?
• What are the options?
• What is the evidence – from direct experience and analytics?
• What are your criteria for the decision?
• Who are your stakeholders

- Clarify decision-making roles – what are the roles, rights and accountability for the particular decision they are confronted with?
- Show your belief in them – set your team member up to be successful. This might include

• Consider whether they’re ready to take on this decision responsibility
• Encourage them to think expansively and consider new perspectives
• Share insight
• Be available to consult with them
• Give your support even if the outcome isn’t what you had hoped for

 
Types of Intrapersonal Conflict – Role Conflict
 
A role is the behaviour and attitudes expected of a person who occupies a given position or status. For example, a given manager’s role may include supervising team members, managing schedules and supporting excellent customer service. Role conflict occurs when a person in a particular role is required to perform two or more roles that present contrasting, contradictory or even mutually exclusive activities.
 
Unmitigated role conflict can lead to numerous emotional costs including
- Low job satisfaction
- Low confidence
- Tension and anxiety
- Lack of confidence in the organization
- Feel powerless to influence decision-making
 
It also can lead to behavioural costs such as
- Withdrawal or avoidance of those who are seen as creating the conflict (ie. Managers)
- Lack of job investment and commitment to the organization
- Increased desire to leave the job and/or organization
 
Supporting Team Members with Role Conflict
 
Role conflict develops when individual goals and role expectations don’t match up. This can arise from sources such as organizational structure, supervisory style, misassignment of tasks and inappropriate demand on capacity. Managers and business owners can help team members resolve role conflict through both role analysis and job design.
 
Role Analysis involves clarifying the details of a specific role with input from multiple members of the organization. When conducting a role analysis, you will want to clarify
- The purpose of the role
- The perception of the role
- Expectations of the person in the role for those around them
- Expectations of the person in the role for themselves
- The role profile
 
By clarifying expectations and the day-to-day purpose and perception, role conflict can be minimized.
 
Job design involves planning of the job, including its contents, the methods of performing the job and how it relates to other jobs in the organization. Job design is two-fold, including job engineering and job enrichment.
 
Job engineering involves developing robust, accurate job descriptions that can help align expectations among stakeholders.
 
Job enrichment means improving motivational factors such as achievement, recognition, responsibility, advancement, and opportunity for growth. Factors that managers can help employees address include
- Skill variety
- Task identity
- Task significance
- Autonomy
- Feedback
 
Intrapersonal conflict is something that most organizational team members face each day. When unmitigated it can have far reaching impacts on many parts of the organization. By supporting employees with decision-making and role conflict, managers and business owners can help employees through intrapersonal conflict and build skills along the way.
 
 
Resources
 
Lancefield, David. “5 Strategies to Empower Employees to Make Decisions.” Harvard Business Review, 20 Mar. 2023, hbr.org/2023/03/5-strategies-to-empower-employees-to-make-decisions.
 
M Afzalur Rahim. Managing Conflict in Organizations. New Brunswick (U.S.A.), Transaction Publishers, 2015.

In last week’s blog we covered one of our human needs: identity. This week we talk more generally about human needs and how they impact conflict’s existence and our individual approach to conflict engagement. As well, we cover how to communicate your needs in a way that reduces resentment, improves relationships, and resolves conflict more effectively.
 
As Mayer (2012) discusses, human needs drive people’s actions, including their approach to conflict. Maslow’s (1954) hierarchy of human needs suggested that before we can focus our awareness son attaining higher-level needs, more basic needs must be met. His hierarchy is often expressed as a pyramid, with our most basic needs such as food, clothing and shelter at the bottom, followed by security needs, social needs and finally the need for esteem and self-esteem, or self-actualization.
 
Mayer (2012) argues that Maslow’s hierarchy of human needs doesn’t account for instances where human needs don’t line up with a neat hierarchy. Instead, he suggests three overlapping types of needs to help conceptualize what motivates people in conflict. These include survival needs, identity needs and interests.
 
Survival needs include our fundamental concerns about safety and security, as well as concerns over food, shelter and clothing.
 
Identity needs are those that we all have to preserve a sense of self – of who we are and our place in the world. There are four elements of identity, including meaning, community, intimacy and autonomy. Some conflicts can’t be resolved unless identity needs are addressed.
 
Finally, interests are often the most easily accessible or observable type of need and lie at the heart of most negotiations. These are the practical concerns that drive participants in most conflicts. We all have different types of interests – short-term, long-term, individual and group, outcome-based interests, process interests, conscious and unconscious interests. These types of interests can be further broken down into substantive (concerns about tangible benefits), procedural (concerns about a process for interacting, communicating or decision-making) and psychological (concerns about how one is treated, respected or acknowledged) interests.
 
Communicating our Needs
 
To increase the chance of having our needs met and reduce the chance of unhealthy conflict, we need to effectively communicate these needs to others. When we communicate our needs, we want to connect it to a feeling that it stimulates in us.
 
Formula for Communicating Needs
 
Feeling + Need that isn’t being met + Request for Need (action or change needed)
 
Feeling:
"I'm feeling exhausted"

Need not being met:
"Because my workload is too high right now"

Request for need:
"Could I take tomorrow off?" (I need a day off) or
"Could I have support with “x” item?" (I need support with my work)

 
By expressing how we are feeling, we can reduce resentment, improve relationships by expressing vulnerability and resolve conflicts more effectively (Rosenberg, 2003).
 
Human needs are a key to the conflict puzzle. Needs drive people’s actions, including the ways in which they engage in conflict. By addressing and communicating about needs, we can reduce conflict with others and improve our working relationships.
 
 
Resources
 
Mayer, B. S. (2012). The Dynamics of Conflict: A Guide to Engagement and Intervention. John Wiley & Sons.
 
Rosenberg, M. B., & Chopra, D. (2015). Nonviolent Communication: A Language of Life: Life-Changing Tools for Healthy Relationships. PuddleDancer Press.

Human needs drive people’s actions, including how they engage in conflict. When our human needs are threatened, we are more likely to engage in conflict behaviours.
 
Identity is one of our fundamental needs as humans. It is essential to our sense of self and is at the core of what makes us, ‘us’. How we describe our identities reflects how we see ourselves and how we want others to perceive us.
 
Identities are constructed from various traits and experiences, many of which are subject to interpretation. Which means, what is important to your identity may not be an important part of another person’s identity, or it may change over time.
 
For example, when I was a teenager and into my early 20’s, being an athlete was a very important part of my identity. As I worked towards playing hockey at the university level, and once I achieved that goal, many of the things I did in my day-to-day life was centered on this part of my identity. Now, 10 years later, that identity element is less important, but that experience, and the habits I developed (determination, hard work, teamwork) is still central to how I define myself. Comparatively, other people who participate in sport may not define themselves as an athlete I the same way.
 
Another example – In the last 2 years I became a mother to a hilarious, smart little girl. Prior to that, I would not have had ‘mother’ as part of my identity. But now, it is a very important, fundamental part of who I am and impacts the way I approach my day-to-day life.
 
As we can see, identity can change over time and elements that are important to our identity, may not be central to others’ identities.
 
Other parts of identity might include

• What work we do
• Type of life we lead
• Marital or parental status
• Political affiliations
• Religious beliefs
• Race
• Educational or vocational designations etc.

 
Essentially, identity is our perception of how we ‘show up’ in the world.
 
Identity Needs
 
Identity needs are those needs we all have to preserve a sense of who we are and our place in the world (our identity). Mayer (2012) identifies four elements of identity, including the needs for:

• Meaning: establishing a purpose for one’s life, existence, actions, and struggles
• Community: derives from feeling connected with groups with which one can identify and in which one feels recognized
• Intimacy: need for another layer of connectivity
• Autonomy: need for a sense of independence, freedom, and individuality

 
When someone undermines or challenges what is important to us about our identities, conflict may result. Comments that undermine our identities can impact how we react and the importance or severity we place on an interaction – it can quickly escalate a conflict situation. This also means that some conflicts can’t be effectively dealt with unless identity needs are fully addressed. In these instances, it can be very helpful to enlist the services of a third party, such as a mediator to help address these needs.
 
Identity can also lead to inter-group conflict. In these cases, opponents assign an identity to themselves and their adversaries, each side believing the fight is between ‘us’ and ‘them’. In workplaces, this may look like groups defined by job title, project or subject area, social preferences, age etc. Just like our non-work identities, a typical employee will be a part of a few groups during their career.
 
Awareness is Key!
Being aware of our identities and what is most important to us can help us begin to recognize our triggers. Once we’re aware of our triggers, the potential that our conflict engagement is more positive, goes up significantly.
 
For business owners and managers in the workplace, it’s important to become aware of the identities present for your staff. By increasing your awareness of how your staff define their identities, you can work to mitigate conflict and prevent the ‘us’ vs. ‘them’ mentality from developing.
 
Want to develop more awareness of your own identity and how it impacts how you show up in conflict? Try conflict coaching.
 
Think that workplace identities are impacting your team’s ability to get along and complete projects? Contact us today for an organizational consultation.
 
 
Resources
 
The Dynamics of Conflict – Bernard Mayer (Link)
 
Beyond Intractability – Website (Link)