Conflict

Sometimes it is useful

Steve Jobs told a story from his childhood during an interview after he had returned to Apple. The story was about a widowed man who beckoned him over to his garage to show him a rock tumbler. He related that the older gentleman placed some common rocks in it and asked Steve to come back the next day. The next day these rocks were polished into beautiful stones. He used this rock tumbler metaphor to describe how teams at Apple who were working on something they were passionate about argued, bumped into each other (hopefully figuratively), and challenged each other’s ideas, but ultimately produced a beautiful idea. Jobs stated: 

It's through the team--through a group of incredibly talented people--bumping up against each other, having arguments, having fights sometimes, making some noise, and working together... they polish each other and polish the ideas. And what comes out are these really beautiful stones.

This story reminded me of the psychological concept of cognitive conflict or task-based conflict. This phenomenon refers to a state of mental discomfort or dissonance arising from encountering contradictory information, beliefs, ideas, or values. This conflict occurs when new information challenges existing mental models, leading individuals to experience uncertainty and tension. Cognitive conflict is often considered a crucial mechanism in cognitive development and learning, as it prompts individuals to resolve inconsistencies, thereby facilitating deeper understanding and knowledge integration. It has also been described as “task-oriented disagreement arising from differences in perspective.” Research has shown that moderate amounts of cognitive conflict positively influences decision-making, particularly in a prediction task. However, research done via a meta analysis which is a study of studies, indicates that too much or in the wrong context this type of conflict can hinder group performance and member satisfaction. 

I was with a team recently who were practicing a product discovery exercise. The group was given a customer problem and asked to use some discovery tools such as journey maps, solution trees, demand testing with ‘painted doors’, and even concierge testing. We all had different ideas but we were animated by the discussion. We were taking one person’s idea and building on it with someone else’s idea. The exercise only lasted about 15 minutes but we were all really energized afterwards. This was basically a brainstorming session and if you’ve ever been part of one with a good group of folks who don’t care about getting credit for their ideas or defending their position, this energized state is what it feels like. I think this is what Jobs was talking about with his rock tumbler metaphor.     

While, hopefully, we’ve all experienced these types of energizing discussions that involve a small amount of cognitive conflict, too many of us are faced with conflict that saps our energy and hinders our team’s performance. Much of this would be classified under affective conflict or relationship conflict. This is where there are disagreements and incompatibilities among group members regarding personal issues that are not task-related. Relationship conflicts are frequently about social events, gossip, or political views. However, there are other types of conflict including goal conflict that can occur when one person or group desires a different outcome than others do. This is simply a clash over whose goals are going to be pursued. There is also a type of conflict known as process conflicts that are disagreements about logistical and delegation issues described by researchers as, “how task accomplishment should proceed in the work unit, who’s responsible for what, and how things should be delegated.” Let’s talk through a few examples:

Cognitive Conflict - In an academic setting, a university research team consisting of anthropologists and economists is collaborating on a study about the effects of microfinance programs in developing countries. During their analysis, the anthropologists present qualitative data suggesting that microfinance enhances community cohesion and empowers women. However, the economists introduce quantitative data indicating that microfinance has a minimal impact on overall economic growth and sometimes leads to increased debt among beneficiaries. This creates a cognitive conflict as the team grapples with these contradictory findings. This discrepancy prompts a robust discussion aimed at integrating these divergent views to form a more comprehensive understanding of the microfinance programs' impacts. The team experiences initial discomfort and uncertainty as they question and reassess their own underlying assumptions and methodologies. This cognitive conflict, while challenging, ultimately leads to a deeper, more nuanced analysis of their research topic.

Relationship Conflict - A marketing team at a large corporation faces a relationship conflict when discussions about upcoming product promotions devolve into heated arguments over personal issues. Two team members, who support different political candidates in an upcoming election, start bringing their political disagreements into team meetings, causing tension and distraction from the task at hand. This disrupts the team's ability to focus on planning the marketing strategies and saps energy from everyone involved.

Goal Conflict - A product development team might experience goal conflict when debating about the problem they are working on in a particular sprint. The tech lead wants to focus this sprint on paying down technical debt, while the product manager wants to focus this sprint on simplifying the product's user interface. This clash over the primary goal for the sprint leads to friction and stalls decision-making processes, as each side pushes for a different strategic direction.

Process Conflict - A project team in a software development company encounters process conflict while working on a new app. There is disagreement about the delegation of tasks; the project manager believes that the senior developers should take on the more complex coding tasks, while some senior developers feel these tasks should be distributed among all team members to enhance learning and engagement. Additionally, there’s conflict over who should be responsible for quality testing and final approvals. This disagreement about roles and responsibilities leads to delays and confusion in the project timeline.

While understanding the type of conflict that you and your team are experiencing might sound like an academic pursuit, there is a practical application in that knowing the type might help leaders understand how to resolve the conflict. There are many different types of research-based and practitioner conflict resolution strategies. One in particular is focused on knowledge, suggesting tactics such as joint learning, where knowledge is developed and shared through participatory scenario development, participatory pathway analysis, and modeling, can help resolve conflict. This might work well for cognitive conflict that has exceeded its usefulness or even for goal conflict. Another school of thought for conflict resolution focuses on change. In the Handbook of Conflict Resolution, the authors state, “The process of change is, at its core, one of conflict resolution. Therefore, one can think of change as an outcome of a constructive or destructive conflict resolution process, and the process of change as a series of conflict resolution activities that lead to some new (changed) end-state.” This approach certainly can be useful for relationship conflicts and even process conflicts. 

The story shared by Steve Jobs about the rock tumbler eloquently captures the essence of cognitive conflict and its role in polishing rough ideas into refined innovations. This metaphor not only reflects the transformative power of task-oriented conflict within teams but also underscores the necessity of managing and resolving conflicts effectively to harness their potential benefits. Recognizing the type of conflict at play—be it cognitive, relationship, goal, process, or other—is the first step in resolving it. For cognitive conflicts that push boundaries and foster deep insights, strategies like joint learning sessions can integrate diverse perspectives into a cohesive understanding. When dealing with goal or process conflicts, structured negotiation and clear communication of roles can realign team objectives and workflows. In cases of relationship conflict, interventions that focus on interpersonal understanding and professional respect can restore team dynamics. By adeptly navigating through these conflicts with targeted resolution strategies, teams can transform potential disruptions into catalysts for innovation and success, much like the stunning gems produced by the rock tumbler.