Stingl & Geraldi, Errors, lies and misunderstandings, 2017

Question 1

Which three theories are we introduced to?

Answer 1

Reductionists: Errors.
Pluralists: Lies.
Contextualists: Misunderstandings.

Question 2

Explain reductionists.

Answer 2

Cognitive and behavioural psychology. Represented by Kahnemann.

Reductionist: Rational action is the right way to act. Deviations from that (biases/errors) should be avoided. Individualistic: how our brain work.

We shouldn’t try to change our brain but change the models of rationality.

Question 3

Example of errors/biases. What should we do instead?

Answer 3

Ex: Escalation of commitment: We continue investing in a failing project.
This can be explained by “cost sunk bias”: our tendency to follow through on an endeavorif we have already invested time, effort, or money into it, whether or not the current costs outweigh the benefits. (on the other hand, we should not give up the moment we experience difficulty.)

Rationally: Forget about previous commitments. Instead determine what the best action will be from now on.

Question 4

Explain pluralists.

Answer 4

Organisational decision making. Represented by James March.

Pluralist: Lies. How decisions happen in organizations even though people not always agree.

Question 5

Explain contextualists.

Answer 5

Sensemaking. Represented here by Karl Weick.

Contextualist: Misunderstandings. How we create shared mental models of the world. We talk together to develop a common framework that helps us understand our experiences in orgs/projects.
We all want the same thing. But sometimes we actually want different things and our mental models clash. Here we try to develop a shared mental model.