We are so fortunate in the Ceannas Community to have the chance to benefit from Herman Brodie‘s expertise in behavioural science. In tandem with Herman we been developing a programme of work which we call ‘Beyond the Status Quo’.
One of the key anchors that prevents leaders and organisations from breaking free from the status quo is cognitive dissonance.
Cognitive dissonance describe the mental discomfort that results from holding two conflicting beliefs, values, or attitudes. People tend to seek consistency in their attitudes and perceptions, so this conflict causes feelings of unease or discomfort.
From an organisational perspective an example of cognitive dissonance might be where a new methodology becomes available which fundamentally challenges underlying theory behind people’s existing practice. In such circumstances people can been exceptionally stressed and uncomfortable.
In order to minimise these feelings of discomfort people will often often look for contradictory evidence that confirms their own beliefs and allows them to maintain the status quo.
I only wish I’d understood this earlier in my career when I attempted to introduce new educational thinking into schools. Rather than blaming older teachers for their obstinacy I might have adopted a much more reasoned approach to allow them to overcome this perfectly human reaction to change.
Here are 3 of the possible actions we have identified that leaders could take to overcome cognitive dissonance:
1. Focus on small, cumulative changes in behaviour that eventually lead to change in beliefs – rather than ‘all at once’.
2. Find ways for people to have an ‘out’ so that they can avoid losing face.
3. Bundle a change with another change to allow people to think differently.
There’s a nice article in The Atlantic which explains the concept in more detail.