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Jack AI, Passarelli AM, Boyatzis RE. When fixing problems kills personal development: fMRI reveals conflict between Real and Ideal selves. Front Hum Neurosci 2023; 17:1128209. [PMID: 37600554 PMCID: PMC10435861 DOI: 10.3389/fnhum.2023.1128209] [Citation(s) in RCA: 0] [Impact Index Per Article: 0] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 12/20/2022] [Accepted: 07/11/2023] [Indexed: 08/22/2023] Open
Abstract
Many coaching approaches aim to change behavior by increasing self-knowledge. However, self-knowledge can be difficult to achieve. One hypothesis (e.g., Jung, Rogers) is that self-knowledge is challenging because there is inherent conflict between different aspects of the self. This hypothesis is foundational to Boyatzis' intentional change theory (ICT). ICT holds that effective coaching requires deliberate sequencing of the client's exploration of different aspects of their self. Coaches initially encourage clients to focus exclusively on their Ideal self. The ICT approach differs from that advocated by most coaching organizations that suggest collaborative goal setting at the start of the coaching engagement, encouraging clients to focus on fixing performance deficits and problematic behaviors-aspects of the Real self. If there is conflict between thinking about Ideal and Real selves, then this strategy will be suboptimal. The hypothesis of attentional conflict therefore has significant implications for coaching practice. Previous findings establish a link between attention to Ideal vs. Real selves and global vs. local visual processing, respectively. This association alone does not imply conflict because, in naturalistic settings, global and local perceptual processes usually work in concert. However, certain stimuli such as Navon figures (letters made from many smaller letters, e.g., a large E made of small R's) create conflict due to incongruence between the global and local features. Does thinking about the self inherently generate conflict, like a Navon figure, or is it more akin to everyday perception? To answer this question the current study uses functional magnetic resonance imaging to examine the overlap in brain activity in young adults between two pairs of otherwise very dissimilar tasks: coaching interactions focused on Ideal vs. Real self; and attention to global vs. local features of Navon figures. Despite the ostensible absence of overlap in the psychological processes involved in these pairs of tasks, we find a remarkable degree of overlap in brain activity. This overlap was pronounced in higher (parietal and temporal) areas known to be involved in resolving attentional conflict. These findings provide compelling biological evidence for inherent conflict between thinking about Ideal and Real selves.
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Affiliation(s)
- Anthony Ian Jack
- Philosophy, Psychology, Neurology, Neuroscience, Organizational Behavior Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, United States
- Coaching Research Lab, Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, United States
| | - Angela M. Passarelli
- Coaching Research Lab, Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, United States
- Management and Marketing College of Charleston, Charleston, SC, United States
| | - Richard Eleftherios Boyatzis
- Coaching Research Lab, Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, United States
- Organizational Behavior, Psychology, Cognitive Science Weatherhead School of Management, Case Western Reserve University, Cleveland, OH, United States
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Boukarras S, Ferri D, Frisanco A, Farnese ML, Consiglio C, Alvino I, Bianchi F, D’Acunto A, Borgogni L, Aglioti SM. Bringing social interaction at the core of organizational neuroscience. Front Psychol 2022; 13:1034454. [PMID: 36467198 PMCID: PMC9714489 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.1034454] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 09/01/2022] [Accepted: 10/31/2022] [Indexed: 10/25/2023] Open
Abstract
Organizations are composed of individuals working together for achieving specific goals, and interpersonal dynamics do exert a strong influence on workplace behaviour. Nevertheless, the dual and multiple perspective of interactions has been scarcely considered by Organizational Neuroscience (ON), the emerging field of study that aims at incorporating findings from cognitive and brain sciences into the investigation of organizational behaviour. This perspective article aims to highlight the potential benefits of adopting experimental settings involving two or more participants (the so-called "second person" approach) for studying the neural bases of organizational behaviour. Specifically, we stress the idea that moving beyond the individual perspective and capturing the dynamical relationships occurring within dyads or groups (e.g., leaders and followers, salespersons and clients, teams) might bring novel insights into the rising field of ON. In addition, designing research paradigms that reliably recreate real work and life situations might increase the generalizability and ecological validity of its results. We start with a brief overview of the current state of ON research and we continue by describing the second-person approach to social neuroscience. In the last paragraph, we try and outline how this approach could be extended to ON. To this end, we focus on leadership, group processes and emotional contagion as potential targets of interpersonal ON research.
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Affiliation(s)
- Sarah Boukarras
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
- Santa Lucia Foundation, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
| | - Donato Ferri
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
- EY, Rome, Italy
| | - Althea Frisanco
- Santa Lucia Foundation, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
- Sapienza University of Rome and CLNS@Sapienza, Italian Institute of Technology, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Chiara Consiglio
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Ilario Alvino
- Department of Legal Sciences, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Francesco Bianchi
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
- EY, Rome, Italy
| | | | - Laura Borgogni
- Department of Psychology, Sapienza University of Rome, Rome, Italy
| | - Salvatore Maria Aglioti
- Santa Lucia Foundation, IRCCS, Rome, Italy
- Sapienza University of Rome and CLNS@Sapienza, Italian Institute of Technology, Rome, Italy
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Cristofaro M, Giardino PL, Malizia AP, Mastrogiorgio A. Affect and Cognition in Managerial Decision Making: A Systematic Literature Review of Neuroscience Evidence. Front Psychol 2022; 13:762993. [PMID: 35356322 PMCID: PMC8959627 DOI: 10.3389/fpsyg.2022.762993] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 1.5] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Key Words] [Track Full Text] [Download PDF] [Figures] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Received: 08/23/2021] [Accepted: 02/01/2022] [Indexed: 11/13/2022] Open
Abstract
How do affect and cognition interact in managerial decision making? Over the last decades, scholars have investigated how managers make decisions. However, what remains largely unknown is the interplay of affective states and cognition during the decision-making process. We offer a systematization of the contributions produced on the role of affect and cognition in managerial decision making by considering the recent cross-fertilization of management studies with the neuroscience domain. We implement a Systematic Literature Review of 23 selected contributions dealing with the role of affect and cognition in managerial decisions that adopted neuroscience techniques/points of view. Collected papers have been analyzed by considering the so-called reflexive (X-) and reflective (C-) systems in social cognitive neuroscience and the type of decisions investigated in the literature. Results obtained help to support an emerging "unified" mind processing theory for which the two systems of our mind are not in conflict and for which affective states have a driving role toward cognition. A research agenda for future studies is provided to scholars who are interested in advancing the investigation of affect and cognition in managerial decision making, also through neuroscience techniques - with the consideration that these works should be at the service of the behavioral strategy field.
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Affiliation(s)
- Matteo Cristofaro
- Department of Management and Law, University of Rome 'Tor Vergata', Rome, Italy
| | | | - Andrea P Malizia
- Molecular Mind Laboratory (MoMiLab), IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca, Lucca, Italy
| | - Antonio Mastrogiorgio
- Laboratory for the Analysis of CompleX Economic Systems (AXES), IMT School for Advanced Studies Lucca, Lucca, Italy
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Massaro S, Drover W, Cerf M, Hmieleski KM. Using functional neuroimaging to advance entrepreneurial cognition research. JOURNAL OF SMALL BUSINESS MANAGEMENT 2020. [DOI: 10.1080/00472778.2020.1824527] [Citation(s) in RCA: 3] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/22/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Sebastiano Massaro
- Surrey Business School, University of Surrey, UK
- The Organizational Neuroscience Laboratory, UK
| | - Will Drover
- Price College of Business, University of Oklahoma, USA
| | - Moran Cerf
- Kellogg School of Management, Northwestern University, USA
- Interdepartmental Neuroscience Program, Northwestern University, USA
- Northwestern Institute on Complex Systems (NICO), Northwestern University, USA
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Beugré C. Management research in Africa: Insights from organizational neuroscience. AFRICA JOURNAL OF MANAGEMENT 2020. [DOI: 10.1080/23322373.2020.1829948] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 10/23/2022]
Affiliation(s)
- Constant Beugré
- College of Business, Delaware State University, 1200 N. Dupont Hwy, Dover, DE 19901, USA
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Wang D, Waldman DA, Balthazard PA, Stikic M, Pless NM, Maak T, Berka C, Richardson T. Applying Neuroscience to Emergent Processes in Teams. ORGANIZATIONAL RESEARCH METHODS 2020. [DOI: 10.1177/1094428120915516] [Citation(s) in RCA: 1] [Impact Index Per Article: 0.3] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Journal Information] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 11/15/2022]
Abstract
In this article, we describe how neuroscience can be used in the study of team dynamics. Specifically, we point out methodological limitations in current team-based research and explain how quantitative electroencephalogram technology can be applied to the study of emergent processes in teams. In so doing, we describe how this technology and related analyses can explain emergent processes in teams through an example of the neural assessment of attention of team members who are engaged in a problem-solving task. Specifically, we demonstrate how the real-time, continuous neural signatures of team members’ attention in a problem-solving context emerges in teams over time. We then consider how further development of this technology might advance our understanding of the emergence of other team-based constructs and research questions.
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Affiliation(s)
| | | | | | - Maja Stikic
- Microsoft Azure Data, Microsoft Development Center, Belgrade, Serbia
| | - Nicola M. Pless
- University of South Australia Business School, Adelaide, South Australia, Australia
| | - Thomas Maak
- The University of Melbourne, Victoria, Australia
| | - Chris Berka
- Advanced Brain Monitoring, Carlsbad, CA, USA
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Verhulst N, De Keyser A, Gustafsson A, Shams P, Van Vaerenbergh Y. Neuroscience in service research: an overview and discussion of its possibilities. JOURNAL OF SERVICE MANAGEMENT 2019. [DOI: 10.1108/josm-05-2019-0135] [Citation(s) in RCA: 24] [Impact Index Per Article: 4.8] [Reference Citation Analysis] [Abstract] [Track Full Text] [Subscribe] [Scholar Register] [Indexed: 12/31/2022]
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to discuss recent developments in neuroscientific methods and demonstrate its potential for the service field. This work is a call to action for more service researchers to adopt promising and increasingly accessible neuro-tools that allow the service field to benefit from neuroscience theories and insights.
Design/methodology/approach
The paper synthesizes key literature from a variety of domains (e.g. neuroscience, consumer neuroscience and organizational neuroscience) to provide an in-depth background to start applying neuro-tools. Specifically, this paper outlines the most important neuro-tools today and discusses their theoretical and empirical value.
Findings
To date, the use of neuro-tools in the service field is limited. This is surprising given the great potential they hold to advance service research. To stimulate the use of neuro-tools in the service area, the authors provide a roadmap to enable neuroscientific service studies and conclude with a discussion on promising areas (e.g. service experience and servicescape) ripe for neuroscientific input.
Originality/value
The paper offers service researchers a starting point to understand the potential benefits of adopting the neuroscientific method and shows their complementarity with traditional service research methods like surveys, experiments and qualitative research. In addition, this paper may also help reviewers and editors to better assess the quality of neuro-studies in service.
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